Bumbling Sonata
by Nik10Senpai
Summary: Just a Mario Rabbids: Kingdom Battle fiction I've been working on taking on the opera singing Rabbid and Boo fusion Phantom, also known as Tom Phan. Taking after the events of the infamous battle against him, I decided to give perhaps a little bit more closure into his sudden ending with a bit of a experiment. Warning: Suggestive themes may emerge
1. After The Battle

_The following fiction is based on the Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle cross-over videogame work made by Nintendo and Ubisoft which occurs after the events of a specific battle which will involve spoilers of the very same and is merely a experimentative what-if plot involving the same characters, none of it canon. If the subject and/or the characters are not of interest to the reader, the reader is free to go back. Likewise, certain questionable/suggestive themes may emerge as it goes and the reader is free to turn back as well. Despite this, the fiction will be free of foul language and gore/blood._

 _Having said that, to those who happen to find this story, I hope the reader(s) enjoy their time reading it and hopefully, for them to provide any valid criticism or improvement they might have towards it, in case they have any!_

* * *

The battle was long and hard, but they had finally persevered. Mario, Luigi, Peach and his Rabbid friends; Rabbid Peach, Rabbid Luigi and Rabbid Mario finally struck the final blow on yet another obstacle towards finding Spawny and fixing the trouble the SupaMerge headset had caused;

The Phantom, previously called Mr. Tom Phan by Bowser Jr, who created him thanks to Spawny's headset triggering once more upon three subjects; a harmless Rabbid and two self-proclaimed "Relics of Goodness", a gramophone and a Boo balloon. His appearance was that of a heavyweight opera singing Rabbid, sporting a mustache and a Enlightenment style attire, although his underbelly resembled that of a Boo. It wasn't enough that the Mario crew had to deal with the maze-like structure of Spooky Trails, they also had to deal with the Phantom's egotistical demeanor throughout their battle against him after the same sung harshly about Mario and spouting referential lines. Luckily, Beep-O alerted the gang of his weak spot pretty easily, shedding light about the spotlights, his immunity towards all attacks and how breaking them would reveal his vulnerability. Of course, this only infuriated Mr. Tom Phan or rather, Phantom into singing his second part, claiming to start his reign soon.

 _"Imbecile!"_ , he'd scream, amongst various other demeaning lines towards all of them as he kept singing his sonata. _"I'm a national treasure!"_ All Mario and his friends could do was struggle as they kept fighting until the very end. Is the Phantom even aware of his own creation? For someone who was made on the spot, he sure seemed to know a awful lot about Mario. Maybe one of the relics had something to do with it, maybe not.

After receiving the final blow, Phantom spun towards his own fate as he starts to sob uncontrollably, perhaps even a little too much. Looking like a theatrical scene, it was almost as if he was performing for his fans. Dragging himself through the ground, knocking and pounding on the floor in mere defeat, rolling around in sobbing tears, hiding his face in pure shame, he finally reaches his hand towards the night sky (or perhaps just the limelight) and croaks his final breath as he finally passes away. The crowd laughs and the final curtains are pulled as the scene fades away.

"What are you doing?" Said Beep-O, looking upon a still unfused Phantom laying upon the theaters' floor.

"... Wait, you mean to tell me I'm still alive?!" The Phantom gasps in awe, looking at his mitten shaped hands as even Mario and his friends try to grasp the situation.

"Well, I guess you can't defuse what's already dead. Although the same can't be said about those Peek-a-Boos." Said Beep-O in a non-chalant voice to Mario.

"... What do you mean, _dead?!_ I'm very much alive! Music will never die!" Screamed the Phantom, insulted by Beep-O's remark.

"... Huh, you mean to tell me you're alive? How are you alive if you're a ghost?" Beep-O pondered.

"I am! I have a beating heart!" Phantom boldly claimed. Mario and friends soon saw and realized he literally breathes and lives music, as they witness the gramophone inside him beating in the rhythm of a heart, even though not quite a literal heart. "What do you know? You barely know me!" He muttered.

"Pretty sure we've witnessed the moment of your creation!" Beep-O continued to remark. "I'm not sure what we're gonna do with you now, we were pretty sure you'd be defused by now."

"Hmf!" Phantom merely crossed his arms disgruntled while turning away. Princess Peach soon approached the Phantom even though that got a dubious eye look from Mario himself. Luigi was not near enough as he was keeping distance from the Phantom himself, having had enough with ghosts as it is.

"Mr. Tom?" Peach called his name, one of his ears perking up, causing him to turn towards her. "I thought your melody, despite its, well, questionable lyrics, was quite pretty." Mario felt unreasonably perturbed by this since most of the song was about demeaning him and even questioned what she sees in him. "Also, I really like your voice! I just wish it were used for more... proper songs!"

"... O-oh. Well, I'm glad someone appreciated it, unlike _some_ people!" He bluntly stated, while staring down Mario and the rest. Mario merely frowned while the Rabbids made none of it. Rabbid Peach was looking through her collection of selfies with some of the Peek-a-Boos. Rabbid Mario simply nodded in disagreement while Rabbid Luigi was daydreaming.

"I did! And at the same time, I'm sort of glad you weren't defused, there was one point I didn't really want you to go!" Peach hummed, as Mario gets appropriately shocked by her words.

"W-well, I'm humbled! But are you trying to get somewhere with this?" Phantom wanted to cut to the chase, he merely thought she had more in her mind than what it seems.

"Well, this might be sudden, but I'd be more than obliged to cordially invite you some day to, perhaps sing on a upcoming formal party on the royal court?" She suggested, while Mario was almost close to snapping. Even the Rabbids were surprised.

"Hmm, seems interesting, but for the moment, I think I'll have to decline." He muttered, thinking about it.

"Why? We could bring you all the services you could wish for!" She insisted while hoping for his acceptance.

"I'm a shy bird, at the same time, I'd feel pretty worn out singing emotionless songs for a bunch of fancies! What's a song without any emotion put into it? Besides, I'd really prefer to just have one person hearing me, even if for the rest of my life." The Phantom gloats.

"Well, I don't think you'll _die_ any time soon either!" Beep-O mocks.

"You shut your mouth!" He tries to keep Beep-O down. "And besides, with all of this chit-chat, it made me question even my own existence! So I'd rather spend some time with myself trying to figure out who I am!" He ponders in doubt.

"I don't know, you seem like you already have some type of standard for yourself!" Beep-O continued to tease.

"And I very much _doubt_ you had any type of standard to begin with!" Beep-O merely tried to calm himself down as to not keep this fight going. "So I insist, I will have to decline your offer, even if for a indefinite amount of time. I'm still considering whether to accept it or not." He tries to convince Princess Peach.

"... I understand." Princess Peach merely nodded, albeit with sad eyes. "You still have a lot to figure out about yourself, don't you?" She asked.

"... I'm just not sure who I am. I may have been someone in a previous life, but as of now, I'm still trying to get to know what I am at this moment. I know things even I'm unsure about." He humbly states.

"Pretty sure you're just a Rabbid fused with a gramophone and a Boo balloon! Who knew such a combination would make for such a case of self-existential crisis!" Beep-O joked.

"I've had just about enough with you!" He bounces Beep-O off with his large body. _"Oof!"_ Beep-O blurted as he bounced off. "And don't even compare me with these simpletons!" He grimaced while the Rabbids rolled their eyes. "It's about time I take my leave!" He muttered to himself.

"Good-bye!" He proudly huffs and puffs as he levitates away from Mario and friends. Before completely leaving though, he takes a quick turn of his head as he looks back on Princess Peach before continuing further.

 _"Good riddance!"_ Beep-O beeped in frustration. "Man, he's really preconceived!" He blurted out.

"I don't know, he seemed very nice even if a bit stubborn." Princess Peach hummed. Mario and friends merely stared at her in shock.

* * *

 _I realize this chapter may be rather short, but it is merely build up for what is to come. If you have any thoughts or criticisms, feel free to share!_


	2. Hopeless Wandering

As Phantom and Mario and friends split their ways, Phantom began wandering endlessly around the haunted maze-like entrails of Spooky Trails. Unsure of where to go, he merely drifts searching in vain.

He was completely lost and uncertain of where to go, there was practically nothing guiding him forward, leaving only but himself to trust. The ambient around him was starting to get to him, as he was still not used to it. Despite his ghastly frame, he felt not at ease.

At one point, he merely stops, not fully knowing what to do. Staring vacantly at the musky ground, he was starting to doubt himself.

"..."

 _"... What am I thinking?!"_ He huffed and puffed before recollecting himself. He was completely unsure of what to do but he didn't want to just stop.

"There has to be something out there... something to help me figure out who I am..."

After a bit more of wandering in vain, he comes across a seemingly large mansion, ridden in vines and musk, not too far from him. Its looming presence was far from welcoming and its exterior seemed to suggest it was abandoned a long time ago. Cobwebs resided in the corners of the windows, showing how unkempt it was. Due to its location, suspicions grew in him as he stared.

"... Should I really go there?" He muttered to himself. "There may be nothing there for me..." He soon thought. "... There's nothing here outside for me as well though..." He sighed as the wind grew stronger, as he felt a slight chill going through him, making him shiver ever so slightly.

Having only but himself to trust, he felt he was going nowhere with this.

 _"... I might as well..."_

He slowly drifted towards the house, fully knowing of the chances of it being haunted or of people possibly living there. As soon he reached one of the mansion's doors, he realized that it was open.

"Hello?" He tried to check if there was anyone there. As the door was left wide open creaking, he tried to peek inside the house.

"... Anyone here?" He insisted, while trying to make sure if he could hear someone. There were no lights inside the mansion, only but the moonlight shimmering from the windows themselves. As he delved deeper into the darkness of the mansion, he realized something terrible.

"... It's getting too dark in here..." He soon realized that the darkness of the house was making him vulnerable. His lower half was no longer transparent and showing the once-clear gramophone, but instead revealing his full exterior, completely white with his skin-toned round mark in his belly. He knew he was no longer invulnerable. "... At this rate, I'm going to end up regretting this..." He stopped before a unknown room after crossing the hallway.

He suddenly heard a noise from the back room.

 _"Thunk!"_ It seemed like the mansion's doors closed shut, although he didn't spot anyone there.

"Who's there?!" He tried to prepare himself. "Show yourself!" He valiantly tried to show courage, even though sweat was still streaming from his forehead. He swore he heard giggles as he looked around searching someone in this place.

"Cowards! Show your face!" He kept insisting, pulling a brave facade. His face was drenched in fear regardless.

A rotund familiar shape suddenly appears from behind and reaches for his shoulder. The minute he felt it, a melodious shriek of terror came from the bottom of his throat. " _Eeek!_ " He quickly turned around.

"Who did that?!" He quickly spotted a Boo before it quickly faded into the darkness.

"H-huh..." He tried to recollect himself before realizing another presence was near him.

"You!" A voice came from behind him. "Who are you? What are you doing inside our manor?" He turned around once more only to stumble upon another presence. He looked upon another Boo, except this one sported a crown instead and was much larger than any other than he has ever seen. It was none other than King Boo himself, the largest of all Boo and the king and leader of them all.

"What are your reasons for invading our house?" King Boo swiftly interrogated him.

"First of all, your house was wide open! Second of all, I've got no reason to give my reasons to you!" He quickly responded.

"Who left the front door open?!" King Boo furiously asked, while another Boo recoiled in fear in the back. "That's the third time this week!"

"But that's besides the point." King Boo quickly got to the point. "What I want to know is; who are you? What are you? What is your business around here?" He soon realized that the Phantom beared resemblance among his kind. He wasn't sure of what he was. He had the head of a rabbit, but body wise, he seemed to be a ghost.

"Not unless I get a proper introduction!" Phantom owed nothing to no one. "Hmf!"

"Aren't you sassy..." King Boo soon realized Phantom had no qualms in standing up against him. He soon felt his position at stake. "Very well then, I'll satisfy your needs. The name's King Boo." He properly introduced himself, further marking his own role. "Pleased to meet your acquaintance!" He grinned as Boos began to swarm all around them, giggling on their own. Phantom felt uneasy with the sudden number of them.

"They don't call me king for nothing, I'm the strongest and largest of all Boos, I'm treated as their Majesty." He grimaced, trying to mark his spot as the king. "We, the Boo, choose our own leader among ourselves and as such, they happened to pick me as their leader." "We happened to pick this mansion as our very own and as such, we live here in the vicinity, haunting these once happy trails."

"But let's cut to the chase, what brings you to our lair?" He pondered and politely asked. "More importantly, just what are you?" He couldn't help but be curious over the Phantom's mysterious guise.

"My name is Tom Phan, but you may feel free to call me Phantom for short." He gave away his properly given name, he might as well. "And I am a opera-singing Rabbid!" For some reason, he remembered Beep-O's words which stuck with him ever since. He wasn't sure why he said that, but maybe he felt more like a Rabbid than anything else.

"A Rabbid?" It was the first time King Boo ever heard such name. "What is... a Rabbid? A different kind of Boo?" Phantom was unsure of what he meant.

"What do you mean?" He asked in surprise.

"Well, I ask this because you seem like you are a spirit yourself!" He stared longingly at Phantom, wondering about the Phantom's lack of awareness.

"The nerve!" He felt insulted. "Not this again! I'll have you know, I'm alive and well!" He re-stated.

"Hee hee, what makes you say that?" King Boo almost musters a giggle upon such claim.

"Because I have a beating heart!" Phantom affirmed himself while showing himself under the light of the moonlight, leaving the shadow of the darkness inside the room. Having done so, his once-vulnerable state was now gone as his lower body gained its transparency back, showing the gramophone inside him beating to the rhythm of one. The Boos soon caught wind of this as they merely stared.

"... A beating heart?..." King Boo was caught in dismay over such sight.

"Hee hee... Hee hee hee..." He tried to hold his breath but in vain.

 _"Hee hee haa haa haa!"_ _"Hoo hoo hoo!"_ King Boo soon caught himself guffawing at his claim, several Boos giggling with him. Surprisingly, some of the Boos were neither laughing or saying anything. They were merely staring at how different and yet similar the Phantom was compared to King Boo himself at a distance. Not even bringing into mention how big Phantom was compared to him.

"That's rich - a beating heart! Haa haa! That looks nothing like a heart! You call that a heart?" Hearing these words made the Phantom distressed.

"What do you know, you probably never even had one!" Phantom stood against him.

"You have a lot of nerve to say that!" King Boo inches towards him, as he sneers towards such claims. "So what if I never had one? What even makes a beating heart that much of a big deal?" He threatens the Phantom, filled with vanity.

The Phantom paused for a moment before he answered right to his face. "Because it allows me to live for myself and stand up on my own!" King Boo felt like he didn't even know what he was saying. From this point, thoughts drifted through King Boo's mind.

"... What..." King Boo had nothing but a pure look of apathy in his face.

 _"... Has this guy lost his marbles?!"_ King Boo was still trying to make sense of what he just said. To him, Phantom's words meant nothing. _"Does he really expect me to sit here and lick my wounds with that sort of reply?!"_

 _"W-wait..."_ King Boo soon realized something, jumping haphazardly into conclusions and trying to make of his intentions.

 _"... Is he trying to steal my place?!"_ King Boo soon made up a whole scheme on his head of Phantom possibly trying to steal his reign.

 _"He is, isn't he?!"_ King Boo soon thought of him as a usurper to his throne. _"And he wants to take my Boo minions with him!"_

 _"As if I'll let that happen!"_ He immediately strikes back, trying to come up with a plan to drive him away from his house or bring him down at least.

"You sure have a lot of gall to come up to MY place and invade MY property!" King Boo felt disgusted by him. "I no longer care what kind you are, I no longer want any of YOUR kind lurking around my palace!" The Boos felt betrayed as he claimed the house entirely his.

"YOUR property?! What about your servants, isn't this their place as well?!" He interrogated King Boo himself about the Boos.

"They own nothing! They oblige to my orders! No one else's but mine!" King Boo did not feel like taking any of his interrogations, making sure to affirm his position in front of everyone. "I'm the one who took them in, I treat them well enough as it is!" The Boos felt more and more unsure. Some of them were even interrogating each other.

"I've had just about enough with you..." King Boo bares his fangs, tongue out, ready to attack Phantom. "Let's see if your heart still beats long after ripping it out of you!" As King Boo was ready to strike, three Boos giggling caught Phantom off guard, trying to hold him from behind, exposing him to King Boo.

"W-what are you-?!" Just as he looked back towards the Boos and again towards King Boo, King Boo inched nearer with his fangs open wide.

 _"I'm going to rip that heart right out of your soul!"_ King Boo was salivating, eager to find out whether Phantom continued to live without it. Seeing his fate drawing near, Phantom didn't hold back. His life was at stake, as his eyes widened while King Boo approached, fear slowly creeping in.

He started to breathe in, trying to fill in as much as he could. The minute he could not hold it in any longer, he sang with all his might, not holding back. _"Bwah-bwah-bwah-bwah-BWAAHHH!"_ He sang a high C, straight towards King Boo, catching him off guard, his vocal power allowing him to blast King Boo away with a projectile of pure sound waves, which made King Boo bounce all the way across the room.

 _"Gyaahh!"_ King Boo shouted as he was delivered the blow. Both the Phantom and the Boos recoiled from the amplified power of his voice against a bookshelf in the room, which trembled with the impact and made books scatter all over the floor, as they remained knocked over the floor.

"Ugh..." Phantom shortly gained consciousness of what just happened. He took a book off from the top of his head, as it happened to fall on him.

"Just great..." Phantom was still trying to recollect himself as he leaned in the bookshelf. The Boos that once held onto him were by his side, knocked out.

"... Are you okay?" He asked without realizing as he tried to reach for them. He stared at them as they laid hurt on the ground. He felt bad for them even though he barely knew them despite being forced to attack the only way he knew how. He tried to pick one of them to comfort them before he realized.

"..."

 _"... Why am I feeling bad for them?..."_

He was holding a wounded Boo in his hands in a soft embrace. The Boo could only quietly whimper as he held it closer. Hearing the whimper made him feel torn apart and filled him with tremendous guilt. Something about it simply made him succumb and act more concerned than before.

 _"Uiunnn..."_ The small Boo's whimper even made his gramophone almost skip a beat.

"A-ah..." Phantom's voice trembled. He was worried about hurting the Boo further, even though he tried his best to gently hold it.

"... This is all my fault, isn't it..." He told himself, thinking they were better off if he had never entered their mansion.

"... I'm sorry..." He softly said while regretting all that he did.

From across the room, King Boo was clearly delivered damage, even though still not knocked out.

"Haaah! Gasp!" King Boo tried to catch his breath together as he tried to float haphazardly back into place. "W-what kind of attack was that?!" King Boo was caught off guard by him. "W-what sorcery is this?! Where did you come from?!"

Phantom didn't really feel like attacking him any further even though he still had to worry about King Boo striking again. He was still catching his breath after that long note. For some reason, he didn't want to let go of that Boo.

Whatever it was, King Boo didn't want to take none of it.

"That is IT! That was the last straw! My Boo minions! Take this peasant away!"

King Boo suddenly noticed their absence of action as they all stared at him.

"Hey!" King Boo shouted. "I'm talking to you! I told you to get this runt away from me!"

The Boos weren't taking any action whatsoever, they felt pressured by something.

"Have you gone deaf?! I'm speaking to you! - Take this THING and get rid of it!"

What King Boo didn't notice was that the Boos were staring at Phantom and the hurt Boos. Boos are usually tricksters, but they don't take lightly of any of their kind being hurt. This however, took them by surprise. They were looking straight at Phantom and the fact he was holding one of their kind as if it were one of his own. Meanwhile, their king was ordering them to take action post haste.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?! Dispose of him - _IMMEDIATELY!_ " King Boo was losing control of his anger, not even realizing what he was contributing to.

Albeit hesitant to take his orders, they slowly tried to reach Phantom.

"It's okay." Phantom spoke to the Boos. "I'll leave... You won't have to do anything... I know when I'm not wanted..." He felt remorseful over the hurt Boos more than anything, filled with great regret.

"Here - they need your help." Phantom merely tried to gently carry the Boos in his hands towards his friends. "I'm sorry I hurt them..." He felt overwhelming guilt for some reason. "I shouldn't even be here..."

King Boo soon took advantage of this. "That's it! LEAVE! You've caused nothing but trouble!" He was infuriated at this point. "You're nothing but a disgrace, intending to ruin what I've built! You're nothing but a freak of nature!"

Phantom soon left without saying another word, leaving only but King Boo and his servants in the mansion.

All that could be heard is the sound of the doors of the mansion locking behind him, as he came and left like a ghost, bearing the burden of knowing the consequences of his actions. It didn't take long for King Boo to take notice of this, as well as the rest of the Boos.

"Your Majesty?" One of the Boos tried to warn King Boo of the wounded ones. "Some of us got really hurt when they took your order..."

"So what?! What do you want me to do about it, kiss it on the forehead and tell them everything's gonna be alright?!" He frightened it as he still had his pent up rage, forcing the Boo to recoil in fear.

"B-but..." The Boo tried to calm him down, albeit in vain.

 _"Boo hoo! Put a band-aid in it!"_ King Boo was neither in the mood to help or collaborate.

The Boos soon realized what they had to do.

They all started looking to each other with a determined look on their faces. It almost seemed like they had a plan.

Apparently, this was already going on for quite a while.

"Your Majesty!" One of the Boos soared from the swarm.

"What do you want?" He breathed heavily as he stared down all of them.

"We've been thinking a whole lot lately - maybe it's about time we got rid of some things around the house!" The Boo suggested.

"Spring cleaning?" He pondered. "But it's the middle of Fall!" King Boo wasn't really understanding what was going on. "To be fair, the house is getting a little bit dusty... And some furniture is starting to pile!"

As Phantom was about to leave the front of the house and back into the crevices of Spooky Trails, he was suddenly caught off guard with a scream.

 _"Gyaaah!"_ King Boo was thrown out the doors and into the stone floor outside of the mansion, as he skidded through it.

"What is the meaning of this!?" He shouted, as he turned towards them.

"Huh?!" Phantom was rather astonished with all the uproar as he looked upon a King Boo just outside his own house, yelling at his own subordinates.

"We've decided to run you out of this house!" "Yeah!" The Boos cheered for the fall of their King. "We ain't taking more of your sassy mouth!" They giggled to each other.

"Well, at least give me my crown back!" He harshly replied. The Boos threw the crown at him, bouncing off from his head and into the ground afterwards.

"Hah!" King Boo guffawed. "Suckers! You've got no way to crown a new king now!"

"Joke's on you, we've got a better one!" The Boos laughed out loud. As they chuckled, they waved a bigger replica of his crown on their side, teasing their king with it.

"Wait, what?!" King Boo was at a loss for words, as even he didn't know about this crown's existence.

As King Boo was still trying to get a hold of things, a swarm of Boos ran past him without him even realizing. As he turned his head around as he trembled, he was yet to see their true intentions.

 _"GYAAAAAHHHH!"_ King Boo screamed from the top of his lungs as he watched Phantom being picked and hurrah'd by them.

"Wait, where are you taking me?!" The Phantom nervously questioned as the swarm tried to lift him and take him in.

"We're taking you in, of course!" The Boo cheered. "Yeah, we've had just about enough with him!" As they took him into the mansion, King Boo tried to scurry inside the house only for the door to be slammed shut in his face.

He screamed once more.

 _"GYAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"_

Lucky were those who weren't near him to witness such a sound, as even the crows flew off from the dead trees unsettled by his shout. _"Caw caw caw!"_

" _Open the doors! OPEN THE DOORS RIGHT THIS INSTANT - I COMMAND YOU TO!"_ King Boo haplessly tried to order around as he banged and slammed the door until it was opened. A Boo emerged from it only to stick his tongue out at him while pulling a eyelid down on him and close the door on him again.

 _"GYAAAAAHHHH!"_ King Boo shrieked as he continued to pound the mansion's doors.

" _YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME - I'M YOUR MASTER - YOU WILL OBEY MY COMMANDS!"_ King Boo was demanding control over them, asking them to bid for him once more. All you could hear were the doors being hammered down by King Boo out of desperation.

"Hee hee hee hee hee!" As the Boos giggled and laughed inside, one approached Phantom.

"Mr. Phantom, this may seem unexpected, but can you please do that thing you did earlier?" The Boo politely asked, slightly tugging at his sleeve.

"Huh, what do you mean?" He was still trying to understand what was going on.

"You know, the thing! When you sang so high, you fended off our master!" The Boo begged.

"A-are you sure? I really hurt you back then..." Phantom nervously asked. He could still hear King Boo yelling just outside the door, making quite a ruckus.

"Yeah! Yeah!" They cheered, asking for a encore.

"Sing us another song, please!"

"H-huh, well, if you insist..." He wasn't sure about this, but it seemed like they were depending on him to blast King Boo away.

"Ahem..." He tried to ready himself.

As he tried to breath in and they cheered, King Boo could still be heard just outside the door while music coming from his gramophone was slowly building up, a small orchestrated track.

"Make sure to aim towards the door!" The Boos had no qualms on their intentions.

As they were about to get ready, King Boo was still just outside, begging for their attention.

 _"HEED MY ORDERS! OBEY MY RULES! YOU WILL REGRET THIS BETRAYAL FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIVES! I SHALL MAKE YOU PAY FOR EVERYTHING YOU HAVE DONE TO ME!"_

Phantom could barely hold it in any longer, as King Boo kept pleading for his servants to serve him, he sang another high C to the climax of the music flowing deep from his gramophone.

" _Bwah-bwah-bwah-bwah-BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"_

Stronger than his last, probably one of the strongest he has ever delivered, straight into the door, blasting the door wide open while impacting King Boo with his amplified sound waves. The floor rumbled with the strength of his waves, furniture and all.

 _"GYAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"_

King Boo screamed as he was blasted all the way through the sky, struck with melody that came from his gramophone. The amplified sound waves were too much to bear for King Boo as he was engulfed in it. The force was enough to send him far away, enough to hear his scream fade away as he distanced. Along with it, the force of the sound waves as well.

A twinkle was heard from afar.

The only sound you could hear was but of silence.

Peace could be heard once more, as King Boo was no more.

* * *

 _This was a quite lengthy chapter! But I'm not done yet! Next chapter's going to be even bigger. If you bothered reading this far, I commend you to it! But next chapter might be the point I might lose most of my readers and perhaps you as well - For I will attempt to make a approach for a more creepy and perhaps unsettling chapter, one that may or may not play out the way one would might expect. Alas, a approach to make the reader doubt the unknown and question even the author itself as to why it was exactly written in such a way. If you so wish to turn back now, then I bid you farewell and I'm already well content with the fact you've read this far. If you wish to continue, then proceed, as I have given my fair warning._

 _Anyway, any criticism is appreciated._


	3. Submissive King

_The inevitable finally came! I'm pretty sure this chapter will be quite controversial as it is. As it stands, you are free to back away at any time. If not, just enjoy this chapter for what it's worth. I fear I may end up being a bit repetitive concerning the choice of my words, but that's what criticism is for._

 _Having said that, I hope people will enjoy it and leave it at that._

* * *

As the small quake eased and with King Boo now gone, the Boos were left speechless as they stared in awe at Phantom over what just happened.

"Hum..." He comforted himself with his handkerchief after that long note, before realizing what he had done. Before he knew, he had a thousand stares coming from the Boos themselves looking upon him. He turned around, showing slight concern.

"H-huh..." He nervously stuttered. "... I may have gotten a bit too carried away..." He nervously laughed. "... H-hah hah..."

The Boos were simply staring at him, surprised at what he did.

"That..."

"Was..."

 _"... Amazing!"_ The Boos suddenly cheered in happiness, catching Phantom off guard. They were hopping about, celebrating with each other.

"R-really?" He wondered while cupping his hands together. "Was that really the right thing to do?" He nervously asked.

"Yeah! We shouldn't have expected any less from our new KING!" They were laughing and celebrating, giggling and interacting with sheer joy.

 _"K-k-k-king?!"_ He stopped to a halt before one of the Boos came with the aforementioned larger crown and put it on Phantom's head.

"Yeah, from now on, you're gonna be our new king! King Phantom, your Majesty!" Their smiles grew even wider as they appreciated his coming. "Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" The Boos gleefully shouted.

"B-but what about your king?!" He nervously questioned as the crown sat on his head.

"Forget him!" The Boo said with no qualms. "He was just like us, he barely stood out! Except he didn't care about us in the slightest! He'd treat us with malice and as if we were nothing! Now you, you're the one with a heart of gold! We weren't even aware someone like you could even exist!" The Boos circled around Phantom in bliss as the Boo stood by his own words.

"M-me?!" He flustered, not knowing what they meant.

"Yeah, you were the one that got worried over us - And you barely knew us!" The Boo told. Another Boo appeared right next to him. "Yeah, you even tried watching over us."

"H-huh?!" The Phantom was in shock. "D-does that mean..."

"And we heard you!" The Boo shook in excitement. "We could barely hear it, but we heard you sing!"

"G-gah...!" He felt embarrassed. Apparently, even though inaudible, he was singing for the hurt Boo back then. "Y-you weren't supposed to hear it..." He felt awkward admitting it. "Your king was yelling so loud, your friend felt restless... I didn't even know what to do, so I just held him near and tried to calm him down the only way I knew how..." He admitted feeling helpless. "It wasn't really singing, it was more like humming..."

"It was more than what our king ever did for us!" They complied, many agreeing with King Boo's lack of compassion. "He'd often give us the cold shoulder - and he would never thank us despite serving to his orders even after all these years..."

"Some of us couldn't take it any more and tried to find a new home elsewhere. Many of us are with King Bowser for instance." The Boos explained the reason why they were so spread out. "He'd treat us like tools, if anything. His power was reliant on all of us, which is why he needed us in the first place."

"It must've been rough for you." Phantom felt bothered they had gone through so much. "And you just took all that from him?"

"Yeah... But recently, we bothered cleaning our mansion - and much to our surprise, we found a crown even bigger than his!" The Boos told him the story of the crown. "But we realized we had no one to turn to... Since then, we've been waiting to witness for a proper king ever since. All while taking all of his orders..."

"By the way, were his claims about the house being his even true to begin with?" Phantom questioned.

"Not at all - We were always the ones who'd often find a spot for us to live in, he never even bothered to help!" The Boos were devastated from hearing that from King Boo himself.

"I see..." Phantom felt pretty overwhelmed after hearing their side of the story.

"But that's all in the past now!" The Boos were overjoyed. "So please, make yourself comfortable!" They offered their house for Phantom to live in.

"Are you absolutely sure about this?" He felt hesitant. "I'm not sure if I'll ever amount to being a good king..." Despite liking the idea, he still felt like it was all too quick for him.

"Nonsense! You'll do just fine!" Some Boos had brought a large couch seat for him to sit on. "Please - Take a seat!" They offered him a stay as they shoved it near him.

"Well... If you insist..." He floated as he sat on the couch, surprisingly large enough for him to sit in. "Well, this feels nice." He remarked about the seat. Since there was no bright light, he was merely in his vulnerable state. He felt like he was in no threat so it didn't bother him.

"It's the closest thing we've got for a throne so that'll do for now!" They giggled. "Don't worry though, I'm sure we'll find a throne soon enough!"

"N-no, I'm good..." Phantom thanked anyway. "Besides, I don't think there's a throne large enough for me to be in..." He chuckled even though he basically knew what he meant.

One of the Boos in the distance noticed something about him and began discussing with another Boo.

"Hey, did you notice anything peculiar about our new king?" One Boo suggested.

"What about him?" The other Boo wondered.

"I don't know, but have you noticed how his shape gets clear when moonlight shines upon him, revealing his heart?" He quickly points to his now hidden gramophone covered by the white fuzzy skin all around and his pink round belly mark.

"Oh yeah! That is pretty odd! When it's pretty dark, it no longer is clear. I wonder what that means..." The other Boo responded.

"Yeah, I wonder what exactly is he..." The Boo said, as he tried to imagine what exactly makes him like that.

"Now that that's over with - Your Majesty! We are more than happy to oblige for your orders!" The Boo near Phantom exclaimed.

"That's nice!" Phantom happily nodded. "... I don't really have any kind of order though..." Or at least, one that ran across his mind at the moment. He tried to relax in his couch.

"Take your time! I'm sure you'll come up with something!" The Boo didn't seem to mind. "In the mean time, we would like to show you our love and appreciation for what you did!"

"What do you mean?" Phantom wasn't quite sure of what they intended as some of the Boos circled around him without him noticing. It wasn't long until Phantom felt something that startled him.

"Eep!" He yelped. "W-what are they doing?!" He looked rather bewildered.

"A-ahhh!" The Boo cried out. "So soft!" One of them exclaimed. "I've never even felt anything like it! It's all fuzzy! Where did he come from?!" The Boo blushed with its tongue out.

"Really?" Another Boo licked Phantom on his belly, which caught him off guard.

"H-hey!" Phantom was finally able to tell what was going on. "W-what do you think you are doing?!"

"It's true!" The Boo confirmed. "It feels really warm and soft!" The Boo said as he flushed.

"H-hey, what's going on here?" Phantom questioned as he looked over from his couch.

"O-oh... You mean you don't know?..." The Boo was a bit confused. "Well, we usually tell our love and respect by licking and embracing..." He answered, which made Phantom feel uneasy. "It's our way to show our affection towards each other..."

From the distance, in a corner, he suddenly took a glimpse of two Boos just so happening to exhibit a affectionate behavior, as they were merely pressing their forehead and licking each other with fondness. They seemed to be happy. Sure enough, he assumed this was what the Boo was talking about.

"R-really?" He dumbfoundedly asked as he looked around. "I-I'm not sure what to say about this..." He breathed heavily as he stared at the innocent Boos. "Did your king partake in any of this?" He made a assumption.

"Not really... As I've said, our king wasn't really respectful of us and he treated us as if we were nothing... He mostly tried to avoid it while treating us as mere underlings..." The Boo sulked.

"Huh..." Phantom was surprised to hear about this.

"... But it's okay, if it makes you feel uncomfortable, we won't do it any more..." The Boo complied. "Besides, it's not like you are a Boo or anything..." He said disappointed.

"..." Phantom stood quiet.

"Maybe we should leave our master be, guys. He probably has a lot going through his head right now." The Boo suggested to his fellow comrades.

The Boos soon left a bit disappointed, one by one as Phantom remained in his couch.

A moment of silence then shortly followed, as he tried to make of the situation.

A lot was going on through his head as he was sitting in his seat, but one question remained the most, drifting in his mind.

 _"... What am I doing here?"_ He thought to himself. _"Should I even be here?"_

As he kept thinking to himself, he didn't realize one Boo was still in the room, gazing towards him. He could go practically unnoticed.

As the Boo slowly approached, he didn't seem to realize his presence. The Boo was there, looking over their new king and merely wanted to show his appreciation. The Boo simply licked Phantom and tried to press its head against him as well.

" _H-hah..._ " It took him by surprise. He felt a rush of warmth flushing through his face as he felt the sensation of a tongue rushing through his underbelly. He looked over only to see a single Boo pressing against him, wanting to put his tiny arms around him.

"W-what are you doing?..." He quickly took action and picked the unrelenting Boo up with his hands, until he realized.

"H-hey... aren't you..." He recognized the Boo as being the wounded one he had previously picked before. The Boo merely tried to embrace Phantom by his chest. Phantom simply wrapped his arms around him.

"Seriously?..." He nodded. "So you're all better now?" He questioned the small Boo.

The Boo simply looked straight at Phantom's eyes as he embraced him. "Thank you!" The Boo suddenly told.

"H-huh, for what?" He felt embarrassed over how needy the Boo was acting.

"For humming to me that nice little song!" The Boo replied. "I was really in a lot of pain at the time, but when I heard your song, it made me feel so much better!"

"R-really..." Phantom couldn't really believe what he had just said. "But I didn't do anything..."

"You did!" The Boo exclaimed. "You made me feel more relaxed. King Boo was really yelling back then as well, which made me feel really worn out and tired, but as soon you started to hum, my cares just seemed to go away!"

"Uh-huh..." Phantom couldn't believe his ears.

"At one point, I just wanted to sleep in your lap..." The Boo softly said. "When I knew it, you were tenderly carrying me towards my friends so they could take care of me so... Thank you! Thank you for being there for me!"

"G-geez, are you trying to make me cry?" Phantom was almost getting teary-eyed. "Who brought onions in here?..." He nervously laughed it off. "H-hah hah..."

"I really want to give you my affection! Please!" The Boo pleaded with its beady eyes. "You're still really big but... I want to do my best!"

Phantom knew just exactly what that meant. He knew he would have to let the same Boo that he had carried back then lick him as to show their signs of affection. But despite the concept making him feel uneasy, he felt like he had to comply to it.

He sighs for a moment.

"... Fine." He allowed it. "I'll let you do it..." He was still nervous about it, but at least he was considering. He sat back, exposing himself as he hopelessly tried to relax on the couch. "But go easy on me, I'm not used to this..." He gave a fair warning.

"Thank you!" The tiny Boo cheered as he tried to float towards the lower part of his underbelly.

As Phantom presented himself before the Boo, while sitting in his chair with his head leaning on his fist, the Boo was met with a task of pleasing his master.

"U-uh..." The tiny Boo suddenly felt a lot of pressure. Phantom's size was looming in over him. The size difference was daunting for him. The Boo could only do so much by itself. Still, he felt like he had to keep up to his promise.

"So, what are you waiting for?" Phantom was waiting for him. He wasn't sure whether the Boo would oblige to his own word. "I'm not gonna be here all da-"

He suddenly stopped, as his face flushed red once more.

He soon felt another sensation similar to the one he felt earlier. The Boo had caught him off guard. What followed shortly afterwards were indecent sensations and thoughts of shame crossing his mind. He tried to look towards the Boo, trying to make of the situation.

The Boo was more or less doing exactly what he intended; licking, as a means to show his affection. But for some reason, this overwhelmed Phantom more than it should. He knew he couldn't just simply ask the Boo to stop, but at the same time, he didn't want it to stop. In short; he was enjoying it. Phantom didn't want to tell the tiny Boo he was enjoying it, but at the same time, he was.

As the Boo remained in its spot, innocently licking his soft vulnerable belly, Phantom simply remained in his chair, sighing as he tried to keep it together with his eyes shut.

"Haa... haa..." He heavily breathed. Even he didn't realize he was capable of feeling in such a way. He felt close to losing himself. He went from leaning his head to clenching his mitten shaped paws in the couch's arms, slightly leaning forward as the Boo kept going, intending for him to stop.

"... T-that's enough..." Phantom softly spoke, barely able to keep up, struck with embarrassment.

"Did I do something wrong?" The Boo asked, while stopping momentarily.

"..."

As the Boo was caught by surprise by his reaction, Phantom slowly reached for him and picked him up with both his hands while securing him in a warm embrace in his arms while saying nothing, pressing the Boo against his chest as his face was still blushing.

"Oh!" The Boo noticed. "You're really warm!" Phantom made none of it and kept holding on to him. "Your heart's beating really fast too!" He didn't realize that the Boo was talking about the gramophone inside him, which was softly beating faster than usual. "Did I do good?" The Boo asked, surprising Phantom with his words.

"..." He couldn't muster the right words to say to the small Boo.

"... You did." He complimented the Boo's affection by squeezing the Boo a little more, which made him feel more relaxed. The Boo felt happy for him as he enjoyed his warmth and giggled. Phantom was slightly frowning, even though he wasn't particularly angry with this Boo.

"... Master?"

Phantom was caught off guard once more. It seems the Boos caught him with the one standing out, as he kept hugging him while in his couch.

"... What are you doing?" The Boos asked as they stared at him. Oddly enough, Phantom's mind was at ease despite all this.

"... You know..." Phantom said in a calm tone. "... This isn't so bad after all..." He smiled.

"What do you mean?" The Boos wondered what he meant. "Hey, what did you do to him?" One of the Boos asked to the one in Phantoms' arms.

"I showed him my appreciation!" The Boo said, as he kept being held by him.

"Really?!" The Boos looked happy. "Does that mean Master'll let us show him our affection as well?"

Phantom wasn't really focused on the other Boos, only in the one wrapped in his arms.

"... Do you have a more... private room?" He wasn't really sure of what he asked for or what he had been through, but he wanted to understand more about this form of affection. The Boo in his arms slightly blushed.

"We do!" They easily complied. "We have a bedroom upstairs! Although I'm not sure what you want to do in there, there's not much in there..." The Boos wondered.

Phantom soon lifted off from his seat while the Boo in his arms floated off and followed him around, trying to make out his intentions. "Can you show me this room?"

"Sure!" One of them said. "Just follow me!"

As Phantom followed them through the dark shadows inside, they floated off upstairs and into a humbly decorated hallway, which had a room with its door slightly open. It seems this room wasn't used at all.

As they entered the room, Phantom suddenly set his eyes around to see what he had asked for. It was a nice pleasant room, albeit slightly dusty. It had a round rug in the middle of the wooded floor but no bed to be seen. The furniture was worn out and hasn't been used since a long time. There was a window, but it was shut at the time, with barely any light coming from outside.

"This is the only room we have." The Boo explained. "We're sorry if it's not up to your needs..."

"This isn't really what I had in mind, but... it'll do for now..." Phantom merely looked over the rug as the Boos stared at him approaching it. "Hmm..." He tried to feel the rug with the palm of his hand. It seemed comfortable enough. He tried laying on it.

"M-Master?" The Boos felt confused over what he did. "W-what are you..."

"Just to make sure..." He wanted to re-assure. "Are all the Boos here right now?" He asked.

"M-Master..." They felt like he was suggesting something. "Aren't you making yourself a bit too vulnerable?... Are you sure about this?" They nervously asked.

"I won't find out unless I try..." He tried to lay on his side on top of the rug, almost as if he was presenting himself to the Boos themselves. "How would you prefer me to be like?" He asked about whether his position was ideal for them, trying to find a good one for him as well.

"H-huh..." The Boos felt their faces flushing red. "H-however you feel more comfortable with, Master!" They all tried to circle around him. Some of the Boos felt pretty overwhelmed by his size.

"Hmm..." He pondered. "... Maybe I'll just lay on my side..." He confirmed his position. He lies on his side, his underbelly practically revealing itself to all the Boos in this room.

"A-ahh..." The Boos were struck with sheer shyness and admiration as their king laid on top of the rug.

"... What are you looking at?" He asked, slightly embarrassed. "Don't just stare, you're making me kind of nervous... Isn't this what you all wanted?" Phantom merely pointed out with a small frown.

All the Boos felt like they were taking advantage of him. "A-are you completely sure about this, Your Majesty?" They asked. "W-we don't want to go too far..." Some of them even began to drool, although they tried to hide it from Phantom.

"J-just do it before I change my mind!" Phantom gave his permission with a frown on his face.

"A-ahh!..." The Boos could barely control themselves at this point. "T-thank you!" They thanked profusely, as they slowly approached their king.

He slightly blushed with a slight teasing frown, as he tried to observe what they were about to do, as he laid in complete submission.

"... This is the least I can do for them..." He thought, as he witnessed them slowly approaching, about to do the inevitable. "I may not be a Boo, but if they wish to make me their king, then so be it." He mused to himself.

As he laid, more and more Boo slowly approached, some of them seemed like they were coming out of nowhere. "... Who's going to be first?" They were trying to decide among themselves. "H-huh... I-I'll be first..." One of them split from the swarm as he got near Phantom.

As Phantom stared at what this Boo would do, the Boo was trying to figure out what would be a good way to start.

"..." He looked at the Boo with defiant eyes.

"U-uhh..." The Boo felt slightly embarrassed, but wanted to keep its word.

The Boo tried not to waste his time. He chose a spot and kissed it with a peck, right before sticking his tongue out. He tried to lick his underbelly as gently as he could. It didn't took long before they witnessed Phantom's reaction.

He seemed like he was still in control of the situation, although it clearly showed that he felt that rush through his body, as his face flushed slightly.

"..." He said nothing, as he stared intently at this Boo, as he took advantage of his submissiveness.

Upon realizing their king's acceptance, surely, one by one, they began approaching him further, they started to show their affection towards him.

He had already grown used to having one showing their affection, but soon, more joined. As the number rose from one to three, he felt a sensation of unmistakable pleasure going through his body.

"..." He was still trying to get a hold of himself, but it was clear he wasn't used to this, as his face flushed even more. His gramophone, presumably his heart, soon started to beat faster.

"W-well, so far, so good..." Phantom tried to control the situation, even though he felt rather pleased.

With the number of Boos slowly rising to five, he began losing control of himself. He tried his best not to let his feelings show, but he soon started to breathe softly, as he sighed helplessly. One Boo took notice of this and due to concern, floated atop him, hoping to help him if he ever felt uncomfortable with it. He couldn't help but look at Phantom fondly, as he slowly started to enjoy himself.

"... Master, are you okay?" The Boo asked.

".. I-I'm fine..." He muttered out, as he began losing sight of things. He felt a bit uncomfortable, but he tried to stretch himself as a means to help him relax. His underbelly stretched as well, which made the Boos quiver with excitement, as they witnessed it slowly moving along with his breathing, teasing them further.

As the number of Boos slowly risen to seven, he soon felt overwhelmed. He was trying hard to not lose himself, but he soon began losing track of things.

"Huff... Huff..." He huffed and puffed. He wasn't able to do much, as he helplessly watched upon them showing their appreciation. His breathing progressively turned heavier by each minute. All he could do was watch his frame being tenderly caressed by the Boos, as they each came one after the other.

"So cute!" One of them said. "He's huge!" Another said. "Where'd he come from?" One asked. One of them was swooning over him as well. "This is amazing!" One accidentally told. "So soft..." One said as they gave a peck. "Fluffy... Is he one of a kind?..." Another one mentioned.

The number soon skyrocketed to eleven. He was barely able to get a hold of himself.

 _"Haa... Haa..."_ His sighing slowly turned into slight moaning. Some of his moans were muffled by his white scarf as he hid his mouth behind it, some times non-intended, as he trembled.

"His voice sounds so cute when he's moaning!" This was entertaining the Boos. "Yeah, his voice is really pretty!" Another Boo complimented.

His mind was drifting away at this point. He quivered as he felt each tongue going through him. The Boo who was watching over him heard his muffled moans.

"... Are you sure you're okay?" The Boo watched in awe over his flustered face.

 _"I-I'm fine..."_ He replied quickly as to show he was aware.

"... Am I supposed to be enjoying this?... I'm not even a Boo..." He mindlessly thought as their tongues gently caressed and pressed his body. "... But this feels so nice..." He was feeling like he was up in the clouds.

"... Why does this feel so nice..." He looked as if his expression was about to change, even though it looked like he was trying to contain himself. He stretched himself once more which made the Boos momentarily pause to try to make him feel more composed before resuming.

"Hey hey, give him a bit of space, you're making him uncomfortable." Another Boo mentioned.

At one point, he stopped counting. He wasn't sure how many there were by now.

Barely able to contain himself, the Boos continued to insist as they showed their gratitude and appreciation. More Boos kept coming, with no end drawing near. All he could feel at this point was nothing other than warmth. His "heart" was beating soundly as they pampered him even further.

"... I don't really want this to end..." Phantom mindlessly thought to himself.

He felt apart from himself.

 _"... What's gotten a hold of me?..."_

 _"... This isn't right, I feel like I'm the one taking advantage of them..."_

 _"... This isn't right..."_

 _"... This isn't right..."_

 _"... This isn't right..."_

 _"... This..."_

The Boo that was looking over him was trying to care for him, but something caught his eye.

"... M-master!..." The Boo called him before hesitating for a moment. This alarmed some of the Boos, which soon witnessed something they thought they would never see or witness.

He merely looked at the Boos longingly as if nothing happened.

"... Master?" One of the many Boos circling around him said. "Are you..."

He was completely unaware, failing to understand what was going on as the Boos stared intently at him.

"... What's wrong?..." Phantom uttered to the Boos. "... Why did you stop?..." Some of the Boos couldn't help but stare at him in awe, surprised at their sight.

He was sticking his tongue out, heavily breathing through his buck teeth as his face flushed red. Adorning a expression reminiscent of a actual Boo, this sight soon caught the Boos off guard.

" _... Please... Don't stop..._ " Phantom suddenly started to beg out of his breath.

"... Hee hee!" The Boo on guard giggled. "Look at you sticking your tongue out! You had it in you all along! You naughty boy, you!" The Boo chuckled as he stared at the Phantom in his true bliss.

 _"... Haa..."_ Phantom wasn't even trying at this point, as he sighed in relief as he kept staring lovingly towards his servants. "... It feels so warm..." The Boos blushed upon such words as they shy away.

 _"... I want more!..."_ He moaned out of pleasure. Hearing those words in his pleasant voice shocked the Boos like no other. _"... Please... love me... embrace me... hold me tight..."_

"M-master!..." The Boos quivered with excitement and embarrassment as they hear him speak in such a state. "To think we'd ever get such a caring king... No ordinary Boo would be able to take this much!..."

Motivated by his sudden behavior and his embracing of their gratitude, the Boos were thrilled to resume their exhibition of affection, hoping to push him beyond his limits.

As they kept teasing him even further, his thirst for appreciation grew stronger. They licked, kissed, pushed, squeezed and loved him as much as they could, taking him to whole new heights as he remained on the floor on top of the rug. It seemed like it would never end. They knew pushing him further would probably taint him to a whole new level and yet they insisted. It was almost as if he was being played around with like a mere toy. In reality, they were really worshiping him.

His heart beating fast, he was sighing in unmistakable pleasure, hoping to bond with the Boos like no one has. He had pretty much surrendered himself to them, hoping to receive all they could offer. And yet, it seemed like it wasn't enough. He didn't feel like he did his part.

He could barely make out what was in his sight as he laid lazily on the floor. But as the room filled with even more Boos, he soon saw a glimpse of someone passing by. He recognized that Boo. It was the one he held onto previously, the one he had shown concern to.

As this particular Boo tried to kiss his hand as a means to show his affection, Phantom tried to pick him up with both his hands despite all the Boos that were tenderly treating him.

"M-Master?" The Boo was simply picked up gently by him. "W-what are you-"

The Boos were left speechless as they soon gazed upon something not even they knew was capable of happening among their kind.

Phantom merely caught the Boo with a long kiss in its mouth, without even saying a word. This kiss lasted for quite a while, as he took his time to give all his attention to the small Boo.

The small Boo was being held by him as gently as he could as he ventured with his kiss. Eventually, the little Boo was set free, as he let go of it with no intention to harm, as he sighed in relief.

The Boo felt warm on the inside, as it blushed from having been kissed so suddenly.

"... M-Master..." The Boo stared longingly at Phantom. "... I-Is this..."

"... I guess it is..." Phantom confirmed the little Boo's intuition with a smile on his face. _"Heh heh heh heh!"_

"... He's showing his affection back?..." One of the Boos among the flock questioned.

"..." Phantom overheard someone's conversation and looked around. Hundreds of Boos were staring at him as he laid in the floor, having completely given his body towards their kind, several still tending and licking his body as he sighed in pleasure with his tongue still out. All he thought was; how many were left unloved for all these years. It seemed King Boo hardly ever cared for them.

"... Haa..." Phantom was almost to the brink of passing out, but he still felt like he could still do something with them, as he stared vacantly at them.

"... Hey..." Phantom took his attention toward the Boo looking over him.

"... Yes?" The Boo quickly replied, seeing everything going smoothly.

"... Come here..." Phantom asked the Boo taking care of him to approach him.

Phantom tried to whisper to the Boo what he wanted to speak.

Before he realized it, he was handing out long kisses to everyone, one by one. He told the ones that were unfortunate enough to not be near him to approach him, as he would "treat them kindly". He did this, as he presented himself to those who wanted to give their affection towards him. Slowly, but surely, he gave and received all of his love and affection towards each and every single Boo in that room. From this point forward, his mind became hazy, unsure of what was going on. The gramophone, supposedly his heart, kept beating faster and faster by each minute.

After a while, everyone went back to their worshiping. This seemed to have lasted for a while until the Boo tending for him went to check on him again.

"... Hey." The Boo tending for him noticed how worn out he was. "... Are you alright?" The Boo tried to reach as he looked straight into his eyes.

Phantom simply laid there as his eyes seemed distant and eager to close, almost empty. He didn't have to say a word as the Boo realized he was close to fainting. All Phantom could do was sigh helplessly.

"... You want to sleep, don't you?" The Boo understood his plea, even though he was incapable of properly speaking. "... You really went through a lot, didn't you..." He said as he felt Phantom's heart churning fast and his sight slowly fading.

"Hey, gang!" The Boo tried to communicate to all the Boos. "Our Majesty's really close to fainting. He can barely keep his eyes open. So... if you want to thank him before he takes a rest, now's the time." The Boo wanted to make sure Phantom's efforts to please the Boos was not for naught. The Boos were sad to hear this, but they understood the reason as to why.

The Boos lined up. One at a time, they'd approach Phantom. Even though his sight was fading and his body was worn out, he was still aware of their presence. He felt each and everyone's compassion. The Boos wanted to make him feel at home. Each would say "Thank you" as they'd give him a subtle good night kiss. He felt like he was filled with warmth.

Eventually, it came to a point where he finally collapsed out of exhaustion, finally getting to close his eyes. At the same time, he was overjoyed. He could finally let out another sigh of relief, as his heart rhythm eased up. He merely laid, breathing huskily, trying to get a hold of himself. There was a small ray of moonlight, which shone on his lower body, revealing the gramophone beating regularly again as the rest was cast in shadow.

"..." The Boos were admired by his kindness, as they stood and looked upon their king having fallen asleep atop the rug in the floor.

"... Did we do the right thing?" One of them said. "... We really overworked him..." One of the Boos said filled with concern over Phantom.

"He's going to be fine." The other affirmed. "He's just really tired..."

"... We can't just leave him in the floor though..." A Boo suggested as it glimpsed at how uncomfortable Phantom looked. "Do we really not have a bed around here? I was sure there was one in this room..." The Boo claimed.

"Let me check..." Another Boo tried to look around in the room. Others made sure to help.

The Boos tried to look at every nook and cranny as they explored every corner of the room. At one point, they stumbled upon a odd looking furniture that stood out from the rest.

"Hey, do you think..."

Even though they struggled, the Boos managed to find a hidden wall bed inside and open it wide open.

"So there really was a bed!" The Boos were happy to find it. "It feels so comfy!" One of them said as they bounced cheerfully on this bed.

With teamwork and all of the Boos combined, they managed to lift Phantom off from the floor, as they carried him slowly but gently towards his new bed. They let him down, as his body sat atop the bed, resting properly in a adequate place. They gave him room, as they looked upon him sleeping comfortably in a deep slumber, taking a well deserved rest.

"He looks so cute sleeping..." A Boo slipped out as it saw Phantom sleeping soundly.

"Hee hee!" Another giggled. "He looks really squishy too!" He said as it blushed.

"Don't get any ideas!..." Another Boo fairly warned him. "... Our Master's really worn out!... If you bother him now, he won't be able to sleep properly!" The Boo told.

"Heh heh!" The other Boo just laughed it off.

"He's not even moving..." Another Boo brought into mention.

"Of course." The other replied. "It must've been tiring for him." He said as they observed him as he laid in his bed. "He overexerted himself too much - all for our sake..." They felt tremendous guilt over pushing Phantom beyond his limits.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine!" The Boo quickly answered. "All he needs is a good night sleep, which he won't get if we stay up here making noise!" The Boos got cheered up a bit, hoping their Majesty heals up.

"In that case, maybe it's better we leave him be." A Boo suggested.

"Will he really be okay on his own?" Another questioned.

"He will - It'll allow him to be more on his own and to think for himself." The Boo answered. "He's been through a lot. For now, I think it's best we leave." The Boo explained.

"Hey guys, just make sure to cover him on the way out - I don't want our master to be sick!" One suggested putting a blanket over him, leaving Phantom safer in his room.

As they made their decisions, the Boos quietly left the room one by one as they looked back on their king, sleeping comfortably in his bed with a blanket covering him. As the last Boo left, they tried to close the door without making any noise.

" _W-wait!_ " A Boo suddenly came in. It seemed to be the one Phantom grew fond of. He sneaked past by the open door.

"W-What do you think you're doing?" The Boo about to close the door asked as he tried to keep it quiet.

"I just want to give him a good night kiss!" The little Boo slightly blushed.

"... F-fine! Just make it snappy!" The Boo gave him one chance. "Our Majesty's really tired, you know?!"

"... I know!" The little Boo made sure to approach Phantom as quickly and quietly as possible.

As the little Boo floated towards Phantom, he was caught distraught over his peaceful expression, as he slept comfortably by his side. His breathing seemed deeper and relaxed than before, which caught the Boo in surprise, due to how soothing it sounded.

"M-Master..." The little Boo stared longingly at his serene expression as he slept snugly in his place, not moving even a inch. He was completely worn out.

The Boo slowly inched forward to approach him. The Boo could feel his soothing breathing.

"... So warm..." The Boo could feel the warmth coming from Phantom. The gramophone inside him was also beating soundly, in a more relaxed manner. The Boo felt shy over seeing Phantom in such a state.

Having gotten near enough, the little Boo approached Phantom enough to deliver a message.

"M-Master?..." The Boo wanted to make sure his appreciation was given. "You probably won't be able to hear me... But..." The Boo insisted to speak. "... You don't even know how truly grateful we all are..." The Boo felt slightly embarrassed. "We really were blessed with a great king..."

"Thank you!" The Boo made sure to give his proper thanks. "Thank you for being there for me... and on behalf of all the Boos in this house... thank you for your warmth and kindness... but most of all, for your compassion and affection you gave to all of us..."

"So..."

"Sleep tight... And don't let the bed bugs bite!" The little Boo gave Phantom a kiss on his cheek.

"Alright, alright, enough of that!" The other Boo said. "He really needs his sleep!"

"Sorry about that!" The small Boo said as he drifted away and towards the door.

"... Geez, are you always this mushy?" The Boo was a little embarrassed over him as the small Boo left and he followed, closing the door shut.

"... Hee hee!" The Boo merely giggled outside.

As they soon left, the room was finally empty, with only but Phantom inside, sleeping soundly in his bed, sighing in relief.

After they had left, Phantom remained in his bed. Even though he had fainted, it seemed he had regained a bit of consciousness after a while. Despite his haziness throughout some times, he remembered fondly all that happened. He had never felt more at home. He had comfort in knowing how much he had bonded with them, sharing both his worst and best behaviors, as he recomforted himself with their affection.

Despite this, he still felt like something was missing. But he wasn't concerned about it, as he realized he had more than enough when he soon met these Boos; a family. It was almost as if they were always a part of him all along.

Eighteen hours had passed since he had fell asleep. It was now 9pm. In the mean time, the Boos were merely trying to keep the house on patrol while house cleaning downstairs, while avoiding to go upstairs.

"... He's still sleeping?" A Boo asked among them.

"Yeah..." Another Boo answered.

"Shouldn't we check up on him? What if something's wrong?" One of them was concerned.

"But we might wake him up and he's still not well rested." The Boo nodded, as it vacuumed the house with no electricity.

"We'll end up waking him up either way if we keep making all this noise." Another one said, with a duster in its hand.

As the Boos argued and discussed his well being, Phantom still remained in his bed, in the exact same pose he fell asleep in.

His eyes slightly opened, as he hears the Boos talking downstairs.

"We've clearly pushed him too hard... He's not used to this yet." Phantom, despite having just woken up, understood what that meant. He knew he was tired, but he didn't realize he had passed out.

Phantom yawned as he laid in bed, shortly followed by him trying to rub his sleepy eyes.

"..." He merely remained in silence as he realized he was in a bed, covered with a sheet.

He slowly tries to get up, despite still feeling groggy. Holding the sheet in his hand and looking towards the bed as he floated above it, he noticed that the bed wasn't in the room before. He wondered where they brought it from. He yawns once more out of sleepiness. For him, it still seemed night, but he wasn't aware of how much he had slept.

As he tries to be aware of his surroundings, he slowly floats towards the door. Outside the room, there was the furniture decorated hallway. By the end of it, there were some stairs. He slowly makes his way towards the staircase and goes downstairs as he tries to memorize the patterns of this house.

As he makes his way towards the living room, he soon spotted the Boos, who were cleaning the house.

"M-Master! You're alright!" The Boos suddenly cheered as they turned their way towards him.

Phantom was feeling rather embarrassed as he drifted towards his throne in silence.

"... Master?" One of the Boos asked concerned.

"... How long was I asleep?" He asked, as he made his way there.

"Eighteen hours!" One of the Boos said as he sat in his throne. "I guess you were really worn out, we were really worried about you!" The Boo exclaimed as Phantom tried to relax in his throne.

"... Master?" The Boo stared, noticing a sudden change in him. He was awfully quiet and didn't seem to respond a lot. Out of nowhere, he sighed.

"... You don't have to worry about me..." He said in a frighteningly calm voice as he leaned in his head. "What we should be worrying about is..." The Boos felt a bit uneasy about what he was about to say.

"... What we should be doing for today?" He said while smiling, as he teased them with his tongue out.

"M-Master!..." The Boos smiled towards him. "I-It's like you were born anew!"

 _"Heheheh!"_ He heartily laughed with a smile on his face. "I guess I did... It kind of feels nice..." He openly admitted. "I feel like I've embraced a whole new me!" The Boos were excited over this.

"But enough about that!" Phantom wanted to change subject. "How about something different?..." He pondered as he kept teasing them further. The Boos weren't really following what he meant.

"Ahh, yes." He continued to play with them. "How about compliments?" Phantom suggested.

"Compliments?" The Boos were confused. "I'm not sure we follow..." They looked towards each other.

"You know - Compliments!" He kept insisting. "Flattery, complimenting, praising..." He kept playing tricks on them. "I want to hear you complimenting me..." He teased them more.

"O-Oh!" The Boos just realized. "You want us to say nice things about you?" The Boo said in a chipper mood.

"Yes!" He was contemplating the Boos trying to follow his lead. "I want you to flatter me, compliment me... Ya know, that kind of stuff!" He remarked. "I don't really feel the need to say you don't have to lie to me though... Just be sincere!" He teased as his tongue stuck out.

"O-Oh! Well, in that case!..." The Boos were trying to come up with ways to praise their master.

"M-Master! Your voice is really pretty!" Phantom felt oddly amused by this. "Also, we really love the way how you treat us right!"

"Ohoh, this is getting interesting!.. _._ " He felt happy over their words, he couldn't help but contemplate.

"But what we really love the most - _is how big you are_!" He felt overwhelmed by what the Boo said as his eyes widened in slight surprise and shock.

"All of your size... It completely makes us look at awe!" "The way how you comfortably sway with pride, the way how you expose yourself before us, how soft you look, how warm you are around us - It makes our heads turn!" The Boos shared their compliments.

"O-oh my..." Phantom felt somewhat embarrassed, but at the same time, he was enjoying this kind of flattery, even if it was unexpected.

"S-should we stop?" They humbly asked.

"N-no, carry on..." Phantom was rather surprised by them. "... I kinda like this..." His tail wiggled in excitement.

"O-oh! Then..." The Boos felt like there was no time to waste. "W-when you gave us the chance to show our affection, we couldn't help but be fascinated by your size!" "Yeah, when we were allowed to come near you, we were all overwhelmed by Your Majesty!"

"Huh-huh..." Phantom felt unusually pleasured. He was definitely enjoying this. His tongue stuck out a little more than usual. He blushed a little as well.

"You were so vulnerable - Stretching and swaying, showing us your soft tender body!" The Boos tried to give each other ideas. "Each and all of your curves!" The Boos kept being as sincere as possible. "Hearing Your Majesty moan in pleasure was like music to our ears, as you kept teasing us with your cute big belly!" They wouldn't stop. "The way Your Majesty breathed, letting us witness how huge you were!"

"O-oh my!..." Phantom was pretty impressed by their flattery. He was panting with his tongue all out in pure ecstasy as he held himself together. His heavy breathing made his underbelly move with it, which inspired the Boos even more as he delighted himself upon such words.

"Just like you're doing it right now!" The Boos were on a roll. "The way how your tummy sways from side to side, how big and lustrous it is, every inch of your body! Only someone as large as Your Majesty would be fit to be king!" "The warmth oozing from it is out of this world!"

" _Oooooh!..._ " Phantom wasn't even aware he was teasing them with his responses. _"... Oooh my..."_ He was practically relinquishing to them.

"T-that's enough..." He felt exceedingly flustered as he put his hands on his cheeks, feeling his face warm from blushing. "Y-you really know your way with words..."

"... Thank you!" The Boos thanked, as they heard their master pleased with their form of flattery.

"But I can't have you be the only ones contributing such nice words..." He remarked, feeling left out.

"H-huh?" The Boos looked towards each other once more.

Phantom then proceeded to pick one of them up while in his throne.

"Hmm..." Phantom was having a bit of trouble coming up with something sincere as he'd hold the Boo gently in his mitten hands. "Ahh, yes." He mused enough about it while they stared.

"Your shape." He softly spoke as he held the Boo. "Circular, plump and adorable - I don't think there's anything more perfect than your perfectly round body." He longingly said as he had his hands cupped around the Boo.

"You're all so small and yet, so devoted." Phantom spoke. "Whenever I see one of you... I just feel like picking one of you up!" He seemed like his mind was at ease. "Your bodies are so soft, it makes me want to hug all of you into my arms..." He said, as he wrapped the Boo in his arms.

"M-Master?!" The Boos blushed as they'd hear such kind words coming from such a beautiful voice.

"I don't know what's gotten into me - But I feel like caring for you all..." He humbly stated. "You all look the same and yet, you all stand out so distinctively in such interesting ways..." He spoke.

"Like you." Phantom addressed the small Boo he had tended for. "You're so small and yet, you stood out the most for me." He further remarked. "If it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't be here."

"A-ahh!" The small Boo's face flushed red. "M-Master!..."

"Come here." Phantom politely asked. The small Boo obliged as he floated slowly towards him. He was soon caught in Phantom's embrace.

"I haven't had the chance to properly thank you." He smiled, while holding him in his arms.

"M-Master..." The Boo felt safe in his arms.

"Thank you - not just to you, but to all the Boos in this house, for making me feel at home..." Phantom felt comfortable as he leaned back in his throne as he hugged the Boos.

"M-Master!..." The Boos were getting misty-eyed over his nurturing behavior. "A-Are you even for real?!" Some were crying their eyes out. "To think our king to be so kind and loving!..."

"I'm not done..." Phantom wanted to praise them further. "I need to make sure all of you realize how much I appreciate you.." He looked slightly aroused. The Boos were anxious for what he was about to say next.

"Last night... I wasn't sure of what I was about to go through..." He spoke in a rather seductive tone. "But one thing I know is - you made sure to give your appreciation." He further stated. "The way you made me feel last night..." He paused for a moment before speaking again.

 _"... Was out of this world."_ He teased them, as he stuck out his tongue once more. _"The way you'd gently stroke my body with your tongues - the way you'd push, press and lean against me..."_ He started to sigh in pleasure. _"How you caressed my frame with such tender care..."_ He started to bounce rhythmically in his throne, making odd motions with his body, which seemed to arouse him more.

"... M-Master?!" The Boos felt overwhelmed by his sudden response as they blushed even further.

"Just thinking about it drives me out of my mind!" He sensually said. _"I was so overwhelmed by so many of you, I couldn't even think straight!..."_ He moaned in pleasure. "All I could do was lay there - as more of you kept coming and coming more!" He lazily stretched in his throne as he moaned, accidentally exhibiting himself towards them. "Having all of you over my body... I just never expected..." He felt close to losing a bit of control of himself there.

"M-Master!" The Boo were completely overrun by indecent thoughts of what they had made him gone through. The fact that he was exposing himself towards them teased them even further.

 _"... The pleasure that ran through my body... the ecstasy of that moment... was more that I could ever bargain for..."_ He moaned out of his breath. _"... I just couldn't take it any more... I felt like surrendering myself towards all of you... It felt nice closing my eyes and feel all of you around..."_ He calmly spoke. He didn't even realize he was still wrapping the Boos in his arms, squeezing them ever so slightly, only just now looking at them lovingly with a blushing face and his tongue out.

"H-he feels so warm..." The small Boo in his arms said.

"Master?..." The Boos said as they bask on his warmth.

"... O-oh." Phantom soon realized and tried to recollect himself. "... I guess I got a bit carried away." He said as he looked at the Boo in its eyes. "... Heh, I'm not sure what this is, but it just feels nice." He pondered about his behavior. "I just feel this rush of warmth deep within me. Next thing I know, I'm surrendering myself to it." He felt embarrassed over exhibiting himself in such fashion. He soon let them go gently.

"I'm sorry... If I'm bothering anyone, I'll stop..." He didn't seem to be sure of what he was exactly going through. "I'm acting kind of weird over all of this..." He still seemed slightly aroused for whatever reason. He leaned his fist on his face as he sat on the throne all while wondering what was going on with him, all while still slightly bouncing, looking upset.

"It's okay, what you're feeling is normal!" The Boos tried to get his attention. "That feeling of warmth... Is nothing but love!" Phantom wasn't sure whether it was just that. "You see, love doesn't just come in one way, it comes in all sorts of shapes and forms!..." The Boos tried to explain. "... And yours is only but one way to show it!"

"I-I'm not sure..." He said as he kept bouncing in his seat. He tried to control his behavior, albeit in vain as they kept staring, which made him even more nervous than before.

The Boos soon circled around him in a warm embrace. Some hugged him, others leaned on to him.

"Then, how do you feel now?" The Boos tried to show their love, hoping to see what he'd do next. Phantom felt rather comfortable with all of them around.

"..." He tried to hug one of them once more in order to better grasp the situation, as the rest held onto him.

"I feel..." He gently squeezed the Boo in his arms.

"... At peace?" He felt relaxed while holding the Boo in his arms.

"... It feels nice..." Phantom simply lovingly squeezed the Boo while breathing in a calm manner.

"... Almost soothing even..."

"See? Doesn't it feel nice to just follow your heart?" The Boo said.

"... Yeah." Phantom simply closed his eyes as he relaxed himself even further. "It kinda does..." He gently tried to welcome all the Boos around as he sat on his throne. His gramophone started to beat in a soothing manner, which calmed the Boos near him.

"So soft..." He described the Boo he was just hugging.

There was a brief moment of peace and quiet, as they remained in their warm embrace. After a while, Phantom only had one and one thing only in his mind.

"... Do you mind being around for a little longer?" Phantom softly asked. "... Please?"

The Boos felt humbled by his words, as their eyes shimmered with it.

"... Anything for our master!" The Boos shortly complied, as they approached him more and more, wrapping him with nothing but love and compassion with all of their kind.

At one point, everyone closed their eyes as they simply basked on this pure moment of peace and warmth. Phantom didn't feel like letting go of them, only but embracing them further, as he remained quiet.

The only thing that could be heard from them was Phantom's gramophone, which was beating soundly as a heart.

* * *

 _Woah, hey there! Didn't think I'd see you here! If you managed to get this far, congratulations! I'd merely assume you'd be pretty bored or creeped out by now! I hope this chapter wasn't too uncomfortable for you, the reader. You must be having a whole lot of questions, but all of them are pretty easy to answer. You see, of all the characters the Mario franchise has, the Boo enemies are probably one of the most elusive and with the most mysteries revolving around them. And I wanted to try to expand on that, trying to give them this sense of family and union between them, keeping them as tricksters, but with a sense of morality and compassion among themselves as well, all while trying to still make them creepy. The way I did it might not arguably be the best way to do it, but I did it in order to see what I could do with them. Writing about Phantom trying to blending in allowed me to see in what ways they could possibly interact. For those who are not familiar with the game, Phantom was created by a fusion of several things, including a Boo balloon, explaining part of his character. I guess you could say that the characters' journey was a bit about self-existentialism and trying to understand odd concepts; which led to him figuring out part of who he was by the end of it._

 _Anyway, don't think I'm done yet. If you thought this chapter was a bit too much, then the next one might make a few heads turn. But feel free to leave any criticism/improvement you may have for it. If the idea of messing with Mario canon isn't up your alley, then maybe the next chapter might be a bit too much for you, to which that I say, feel free to turn back now. For now, until next time!_


	4. Stubborn Little Princess

_The following chapter follows after the events of the previous chapters (although it can be considered a what-if scenario split from the rest) and after the game's original ending (before Story DLC expansion)._

 _From this point forward, I realize I may have not written this chapter as well as I could, but I guess I just wanted to get the main idea out of my head before I was bound to forget. Anyway, I hope that the reader(s) enjoy this chapter and most of all, to enjoy their time with it. If you would like to share any vital criticism or improvement (especially on the latter half of it) that might make this chapter a little more special, I'd be more than happy to!_

 _In case the final warning wasn't heed, I will need to remind that this chapter will indeed mess with Mario canon (ever so slightly). If your will is still to proceed, then all I can say is, I hope you like this chapter for what it's worth._

* * *

A long time has seemingly passed, as Mario's quest with the Rabbids had already gone by. Throughout all these events, Mario and friends have managed to beat Megabug, a space-time anomaly that soon had gotten its own physical form. It had managed to possess even Bowser, but even that wasn't enough to stop them from putting an end to it. Eventually, Spawny was saved and Bowser got freed from Megabug as well.

To commemorate Mushroom Kingdom's re-building, a statue was built in homage to Rabbid Peach. The Rabbids, for the time being, still remain in Mushroom Kingdom, as they prawl around, surprisingly causing no trouble, but rather, are helping around.

Night time quickly falls, as the moon shines once more in Princess Peach's castle. Princess Peach was in her room, looking out her window outside. Moonlight was shimmering towards her, as she looked towards it.

"Knock knock!" Toadsworth knocked on her door, prying the door open slowly. It didn't take long for him to notice her by the window balcony. "That was quite a day, wasn't it? I'm just glad things have gotten back to normal! I mean, there's still those rabbit creatures going around, but they don't seem to be harming anyone either!" He soon approached her, as he witnessed her figure by the moonlight.

"Ohoh! Taking a look at the starry night as usual, my dear?" Toadsworth seemed to be used to this, as Princess Peach often looks out the window from time to time. "You can feel a nice breeze up here!" He felt his white mustache wiggling along with the wind of the night, before he noticed something. "Hmm?"

Her eyes seemed sad, almost as if something was in her mind.

"My dear, you seem so sad, what's going through your mind?" He seemed rather worried. "Is it those new friends of ours? Are they upsetting you?" He thought the Rabbids had something to do with it.

"No..." Princess Peach didn't want him to think such. "It's not that... I'm just..."

Toadsworth didn't seem to know what was going through her mind.

"... I'm just worried..." Princess Peach felt a bit of guilt.

"About what? That Mega-Hyper-ma-jig was finally put an end to it! The kingdom is rebuilt! Mario and everyone else came back safe and sound, including you, my dear!" Toadsworth wasn't really sure what else could be upsetting her. "Did something happen that I may not know of?" Toadsworth questioned.

"..." Princess Peach simply remained in silence.

"... Mr. Tom..." She softly spoke.

"... Mr. Tom?" Toadsworth couldn't help but hear her. "Who is this Mr. Tom that you speak of?"

"..." Princess Peach kept in silence once more.

"... Princess Peach, you're free to tell me anything." Toadsworth politely begged. "It'll be my fault if I don't get to know what's truly upsetting you and make you feel at ease."

"..." Princess Peach looked towards the moon once more.

"... Something... happened in our adventure..." Princess Peach tried to open herself to Toadsworth.

"... Did you get hurt?!" Toadsworth got concerned.

"... No, no!... Heavens, no..." Princess Peach tried to explain before things got out of hand.

"... We... met someone... Or rather, witnessed someone being created..." She tried to breathe to calm down.

Princess Peach tried to tell her story as best as she could.

"When we went to Spooky Trails... We got misguided by Bowser Jr. into a trap..." She tried to remember as much as she could. "When we finally knew about it, Bowser Jr. used Spawny to create another fusion..."

"That rapscallion!" Toadsworth felt bitter over Bowser Jr. and his acts, as he knew better than anyone how much he takes after his father. "And then what?"

"... We witnessed the fusion being created... Someone by the name of Phantom..." She remembered Phantom being made and his creation.

"Phantom?" Toadsworth clearly didn't know about this, as it was the first time he heard this name. "Who is this Phantom?" He questioned her further.

"... A fusion led by us between a Rabbid, a gramophone and a Boo balloon we had found." Princess Peach spoke.

"... And I assume Mr. Tom to be this Phantom fellow you speak of?" Toadsworth easily deduced.

"... Yes." Peach confirmed. "He... turned out to be a opera singer."

"... Well! That doesn't sound so bad!" Toadsworth seemed at ease.

"... But he was still making up trouble. He sang a ballad poking fun against Mario and tried to get in our way." Princess Peach remarked.

"Ohoho! That must've roused our good Mario then! And I assume he was beaten by the very same?" Toadsworth tried to deduce.

"Pretty much!" She giggled, trying to remember Phantom's cute tantrum. "But then..."

"... It turned out he didn't really defuse in the end, so we ended up talking with him a bit more." Princess Peach argued. "I found him so charming, I felt compelled to inviting him to our royal court!"

"You did?!" Even Toadsworth felt admired by her decision. "... And did he accept?"

"No... He ended up rejecting the offer..." Princess Peach got a bit sad. "After that, we didn't really get to see him once more... He said he wanted to figure out more about himself on his own..."

"... And that's the last you've seen of him?" Toadsworth pondered.

"... Yes..." Princess Peach spoke. "Since then, I haven't heard even a single word about him..."

"... Almost as if he completely vanished." Toadsworth mused about it.

Princess Peach tried to hold them back, but tears soon started to flow from her eyes, which made Toadsworth greatly upset.

"... Princess Peach! Please don't cry, as I'm sure this Mr. Tom fellow is still out there somewhere!" Toadsworth tried to cheer her up. "Maybe, just maybe he'll come back to sing you a little operetta!"

Princess Peach tried to clean her tears gently with her hand.

"... Really?" She tried to smile. "But it's been so long..." She was close to losing hope.

"Well, you could just ask Mario to go find him!" Toadsworth suggested.

"But he doesn't really like Mario that much either... I'm not sure if that'll work..." She wondered.

"Maybe assemble a search team to go and find him instead?" Toadsworth provided another suggestion.

"We might scare him off though... He doesn't know any of our troops and he might think he's being hunted down..." Princess Peach remarked.

"... What a conundrum!" Toadsworth felt frustrated as he taps his cane down.

"... I guess there's nothing we can really do about it..." He soon calmed down, feeling disappointed with himself over not being able to do much. "If only there was another way..."

"That's okay... It's not like there's any other option..." Princess Peach felt sad. She looked at the moon once more.

"Maybe... maybe he'll find his way..."

"... Hopefully..." Toadsworth prayed for the same, even if only to see Peach smile once more.

A moment of silence struck between them, as they both hoped for the best.

"... Well, it's getting late." Toadsworth remarked. "It's better to get inside. It's starting to get awfully chilly in here!" He got off the balcony as to keep himself warm inside her room and to give her some privacy. "... And you should get some rest too..."

"... You're right." Princess Peach tried to rub her weary eyes. "Maybe I should just lay down..." She said, feeling rather drowsy. She got off the balcony as well, closing the window doors shut as to not let any cold get in.

"... Very well then." Toadsworth tried to recollect himself. "Good night, my dear. I hope this whole thing doesn't leave you awake!"

"Thank you, Toadsworth, for hearing me out!" She tried to properly thank him.

"Oh, it was nothing!" Toadsworth said as he tried to leave her room and try to close her door shut.

"Oh, and one more thing..." Toadsworth got her attention.

"... Yes?" Princess Peach listened.

"... I'm sure you will eventually find this friend of yours." He comforted her.

Princess Peach merely smiled towards Toadsworth over him caring about her, which put his mind at ease.

"Nighty night!" Toadsworth wanted to give her a good night sleep. "And don't let the bed bugs bite!" It didn't take long for him to close her room's door slowly and gently.

"Good night..." Princess Peach wished the same for him.

Sure enough, the door of her room closed with a re-assuring lock. She could hear his little feet pitter patter, distancing away from the door, as he walked away with his cane.

For a moment, only silence was heard.

A rush of feelings suddenly overcame her. Something didn't feel right.

She securely held the brooch in her chest to make herself feel more at ease.

"... Mr. Tom..."

"... Where have you gone to?..."

She felt torn apart, unsure of his location, thinking of the worst case scenario.

 _"... What if something happened to you?..."_

Princess Peach would be devastated if something terrible were to happen to him. Just the mere thought was enough to send chills down her spine, filling her with concern and worry.

At one point, a idea crossed her mind. But she wasn't sure whether to go through with it.

Inevitably, she came to one conclusion.

"... I'm going to go find you!" She seemed to have her mind set.

 _"Even if it takes my whole life!..."_ She re-assured herself.

She walked across the room and towards the window balcony once more.

As she peeked through out the window in the balcony, she could tell it was going to be a cold night. Clearly, that didn't stop her track. She wasn't sure about his whereabouts, but something told her to search near Spooky Trails, the place where she has last seen him. As she saw the haunted trails from afar, she soon made her way out of her room and sneaked past the castle, making her way towards a secret hallway that led to the castle's outskirts, as to not let herself be caught. Eventually, she stepped out of the castle. It seemed like the cold didn't mind her, as her adrenaline made her warm regardless.

She merely stormed off, all without saying a word or a whisper to anyone else, not even Mario.

Making her way towards Spooky Trails in this chilly night, she ventures through these trails with little to no problem, as she had already gone through them with Mario and friends and had already memorized most of her path. She eventually ran into your typical enemies, but she tried to avoid them rather than confront them, in order to not waste any time, for she knew that would only cause nothing but trouble, both for herself and others.

Eventually, she came across the very spot where Phantom once stood and where they all met. A ruined open theater, with little to no use. This was the very spot where he was created using nothing but the "Relics of Goodness" and a Rabbid.

She remembered him taking off not too far from this place. From here, she remembered him storming off towards north, where musky trails to a haunted forest meets not too far from here.

 _"... Where did you ran off to?..."_ Princess Peach got increasingly worried.

As she walks on these trails, she feels constant chills down her spine. The ground was musky and the floor steps were slippery. She tried her best as to not slip on them. Every so often, she'd glance at dead trees on the corner of her eyes.

 _"... Is this how he felt going through here?"_ She pondered, all while remaining cautious.

As the adrenaline was no longer keeping her just as warm, the cold was getting to her. Still, that didn't stop her.

She could practically see her own breath amidst the temperature of the night.

Much like Phantom, she stumbled upon a familiar large mansion, not too far from her. Everything about it screamed it being haunted, which made her even more worried. Covered in musk, vines and partial damage, she knew that place spelled trouble. Regardless, she thought towards herself.

"... What would I do if I were him..." She mused to herself, while putting herself in his shoes.

"... He wouldn't have anywhere else to go..." She panicked. "... He probably might have hidden there to keep himself warm..." After thinking things through, she clearly knew what to do, even though she was hesitant to do so, her heart slightly pounding.

As she walked towards the large mansion, its rather haunting appearance made her feel distressed. In truth, she really had nowhere else to go. She wasn't aware this mansion even existed, despite being sure of having explored all of Spooky Trails with Mario.

She tries to knock on the door, but no one came.

Her heart felt not at ease, feeling quite perturbed by the silence of the night.

She tries to knock once more in hopes of someone answering.

The door simply cracks wide open.

Princess Peach tries to see if there was anyone there, but there was not. The door simply opened despite no one being there. This made her feel unsettled.

"... Should I really go in?..." She thought to herself, but at the same time, no one was around.

Driven by nothing but her persistence to find Phantom and her morbid curiosity, she merely walks in, as the rather surprising warmth of the mansion kept her safe from the night's cold winds. If this were a trap, she couldn't have possibly fell more for it.

"... Hello?" Princess Peach tries her best in order to at least get some answer or reply.

Princess Peach closes the mansion's door politely, as to not sound rude. The door closes shut with a loud re-assuring lock.

"..." She felt unnerved over the lack of response.

As she looked around, she noticed the lack of lighting around the mansion. Despite this, she could tell its interior was surprisingly well taken care of, despite its musky exterior. The entrance and the rooms seemed clean as far as her eyes could see, its antique furniture well kept. Even so, no haunted mansion would ever be complete without a few cobwebs in the edges of the ceiling around the house. But even these were absent from it. Even Princess Peach felt rather distraught with it, as she felt she was breaking into someone's cozy house instead. Still, the lights were out, darkness looming in.

"... Please, if anyone lives in this house..." She tried once more.

 _"... Please, answer me..."_

It didn't take long for someone to come on by to check on things.

"Are you lost?" A Boo surprised her from behind as it teased her.

 _"Eep!"_ She jumped as she turned around. "Boos!" She wasn't surprised. Boos for the most part, inhabit haunted mansions and make it their own. It didn't take long for her to start wondering more and more about it.

"Hee hee!" Surely enough, more came. "Look who's gotten herself lost again!" They teased her further.

"... I'm not lost!" She got reasonably upset.

"... Hee hee!" They laughed more and more while they watched her getting uptight. "Well, it doesn't matter any way! You'll be a great appetizer for our king!"

"... King?" She immediately thought of King Boo. "If he's here... Then does that mean..." She grew more and more worried over what might have happened to Phantom. She looked like she was about to gasp, her hands covering her mouth.

"... Take me to him!" Princess Peach didn't seem to want to waste any time.

"Hee hee! Aren't you a little surprise! And why should we?" The Boos teased her even more.

"I don't have to give my reasons, just take me to him!" She insisted as she stomped her foot down.

"... Hee hee!" They looked towards each other in glee. "If you insist... Just follow me! Looks like someone's excited to meet their end!"

"Hmf!" She pouted, not wanting to have anything to do with the Boos, but rather their king.

As she was clearly not amused over the whole situation, she cautiously follows the cheerful trope of Boos across the mansion's hallways, into the darkness, as they giggled with not a care in the world. The way they were being so carefree unsettled her more than anything else, as she already grew used of the dark. Still, she kept going, with only but one intention in mind. All while thinking to herself.

"... Why did it had to be King Boo, of all things..." She wasn't in the mood to act aloof.

"... If King Boo were to stumble upon him, he..." Princess Peach grew more and more upset. She grew anxious, thinking the worst had happened to him, especially after knowing what King Boo is capable of and his sadistic demeanor. She still wasn't over the fact that King Boo once held Mario hostage.

"... Mr. Tom..."

 _"... Don't tell me you got caught too..."_

Eventually, the Boos finally guided her towards a large chamber door.

"... Hee hee!" The Boos made sure to make her feel disheartened. "... Any last words before getting in?"

"Hmf!" She didn't seem like wasting any more time. "Just open it already!"

"Okay, if you insist! Hee hee!" The Boos lost no time opening the chamber's door. "Don't say we didn't warn you! But I guess you really are eager to die!"

Surely enough, they all got in. The chamber was as wide as a throne room and properly decorated as one. She didn't realize just how big the mansion was, almost comparable to a castle. It wouldn't even cross her mind to think of this place as such. For a minute, she thought it was merely a illusion made from the concepts of her mind. Or a illusion made by the same, King Boo. Of course, this only peaked her interest further, as she tried to search for Phantom.

"..." Princess Peach couldn't see across the room, as it was engulfed in darkness.

King Boo was nowhere in her sight nor could she really see anyone else.

She sighed for a moment.

Her heart started to pound, as she could not see a thing. She tried to go near, regardless of her fear.

The Boos suddenly made a dash towards her, trying to stop her in her track.

"Woah woah woah, this is as far as you'll go!" The Boos surely enough made a stand. "We don't want you making a fuss near our king!" The Boos warned her. "Yeah, if you have something to say, then you can do so from right here!" They made sure not to give her too much leash.

"Hmf!" She pouted once more. Despite the throne room's looming darkness, she made sure to speak out.

 _"I know you're in there! Show yourself!"_ Princess Peach didn't feel like being polite. "You've got nowhere else to hide!"

From across the room, a Boo was whispering to a large figure as it remained seated on its throne with its head leaning on its fist. It seemed like it was sleeping soundly and woke up just now.

 _"... Hee hee!"_ The Boo giggled at her sight.

"Looks like we've got ourselves a visitor!" The Boo spoke. "Do you want us to dispose of it?" The Boo questioned.

The large figure was none other than Phantom himself. His eyes seemed dull and expressionless, perhaps from still trying to make what's ahead of him, as he tried to awake from his slumber, still feeling drowsy.

As he set his eyes on his visitor, the person felt familiar to him.

"..." He simply stared towards Princess Peach.

"... _No_." Phantom felt he had seen this person before, but he was unsure. "... Not yet..."

"... Hee hee!" The Boo giggled. "... Enjoying the sight?" The Boo suggested the Princess' lovely frame.

"... That's not it..." Phantom for some reason couldn't keep his eyes off her.

The Boos that kept her on guard tried to keep her from approaching further.

"Let go of me!" Princess Peach didn't want to play with them.

"What's the matter? Why are you so upset?" The Boos teased. "Just say what you have to say!" One suggested.

"It won't matter anyway! Hee hee!" Their laughter became contagious as they poked fun at Peach over and over.

" _Grr!_ " Princess Peach didn't want to stall things any further.

"King Boo!" She shouted from the top of her lungs. "I know you're in there! What did you do to him?!"

"... Eh?" The Boos felt rather confused, but then remembered King Boo was no longer with them nor that she was aware of such. As such, they remained quiet as to keep this charade going. "Hey hey, keep quiet, maybe things will get a little more interesting!" They tried to hush.

"If I find out you did something to him!..." Princess Peach didn't want to take any of it.

"... Hee hee!" One of the Boos couldn't help but snicker. "... And who is this person that you speak of?..." They tried to laugh it off. "Hee hee! For all we know, they might be as good as dead!" They all snickered in joy.

 _"... Mr. Tom!"_ Her shout could be heard from across the room. "Don't act like you don't know about it!" Princess Peach was close to losing it. "I know you all too well, of all people, I'd expect you the most to take advantage of him!" She proclaimed.

 _"Where is he?!"_ Princess Peach shouted from the top of her lungs, demanding for a answer.

"... Mr. Tom?" The Boos giggled in jest. "I don't think there's anyone here who goes by that name either!" The Boos reaffirmed. "What are you saying, silly girl?" They laughed more and more as their giggles teased her further, contaminating the throne room little by little.

"That's a lie and you know it!" Princess Peach was infuriated. "I can hear his heartbeat!" "He's in here somewhere!"

"... Heartbeat?..." The Boos wondered, all while still in jest.

It took them a while to realize what she had meant.

They soon stopped laughing.

The Boos were left in distraught as they all stared at her. From across the room, they didn't realize their own king's heartbeat, which came from his gramophone. Even Phantom was caught in surprise, as he set his eyes on her, as he finally remembers her, his eyes wide open amidst the darkness of it all.

Everyone was silent.

Phantom's breathing also got uneven, upon happening to be involved as well.

It didn't take them too long to understand what was really going on.

 _"... Hee hee hee! Haa haa haa haa!"_ They burst into laughter. Even Phantom couldn't help but laugh a little from his throne, although it was barely audible. The room was soon filled with everyone's laugh.

" _Hah hah hah hah!..._ " Phantom slightly giggled, as he tried to muffle his laugh with his hand as to not give himself away.

"... What are you laughing about?!" Princess Peach felt more and more infuriated.

"... Hee hee!" The Boos tried to recollect themselves from their snickering.

From across the room, there was a change in expression as well from Phantom. He playfully stuck his tongue out in a teasing manner, which the Boo quickly could tell at a instance.

"Hey..." Phantom couldn't help but ask to the Boo right near him.

"Yes, Master?" The Boo tried to listen to his plea.

 _"... I want to play with her a little..."_ Phantom felt like teasing her a little.

"... Hee hee!" The Boo snickered. "If you wish!"

Phantom didn't waste time and gently lifted himself from his seat, slowly trying to approach Princess Peach from her back.

"Hahahah, leave me alone! Shoo, shoo!" Princess Peach tried to shoo the Boos away as they tried to tickle her to lift up her spirits and distract her. As she had her back turned against the darkness, Phantom took this chance to wave his handkerchief on her head, making her feel a slight impression on the top of her head.

 _"... Eek!"_ Princess Peach tried to turn away, but couldn't get to see what it was. "... What was that?!"

Phantom quickly took advantage of the room's darkness to swiftly hide himself.

"... Hee hee hee!" He giggled to himself. It seems it had been a while since he had this much fun. He was trying his best as to not let his laugh out, as he kept his snickers to himself.

"... That's not funny!" She didn't feel like playing around. "Why are you doing this?!"

"... Hee hee hee!" The Boo laughed along. "If only you knew!..."

"Know? Know about what?" Princess Peach was caught with her back turned against Phantom again, who was about to try to catch her off guard.

Princess Peach soon felt another presence right behind her. She quickly turned around.

"... Huh?" Princess Peach swore she felt something, but she couldn't see anything. He turned around behind her, as to tease her further. Every time she'd turn, he would turn as well. The Boos were having the time of their life witnessing this, seeing their king with a smile on his face.

"You see, King Boo's no longer with us!" The Boos shared. "Yeah, he's long gone now."

"Wait, what?" Princess Peach wasn't sure what they meant by this. "But then, who's your..." Phantom then softly tapped her on her shoulder.

 _"It's me!"_ Phantom blurted out happily. Princess Peach turned around, only to witness a alive and well Phantom giggling his heart out, as she laid eyes upon him in shock. "Ha ha ha ha!" He laughed, holding his handkerchief in his hand.

"Although I prefer Prince Phantom honestly..." He mused about it.

"... Mr. Tom?..." Princess Peach suddenly felt overwhelmed over seeing him so happy. She was still trying to process the whole thing.

"... But Mr. Tom does have a nice ring to it!" He jokingly said.

"... I was so worried about you..." She suddenly became misty-eyed over the whole matter. She felt close to crying. "Where have you been?..." Tears soon started streaming down her face as she hiccuped right in front of him.

"... H-hey, hey! Don't you cry on me, this is a no-cry household! Crying is strictly forbidden, it's specifically stated in the rule book!" He tried to hug her in hopes it would calm her down.

"It's true, it's in the living room." One of the Boos confirmed. "But he tends to break that rule often."

 _"No need to share that much information..."_ Phantom frowned to that particular Boo before watching over Peach.

"There, there, are you alright?" He kept hugging her to make sure.

"Yeah... It's just that... It's been so long..." She tried to rub off her tears.

"Has it really?" Phantom was surprised. "Honestly, I can't tell, all the clocks in this house are broken. At one point, I thought it was always Monday!"

"... Tee hee!" Princess Peach couldn't help but giggle. She seemed to have calmed down.

"... Master, do you know her?" One of the Boos asked.

"I guess you could say she's a friend..." He laughed it off.

"... Anyway, why are you even here?" He wondered. "It's the middle of the night! And it's awfully chilly out there! How did you even end up here?" He questioned her even further.

"... I was trying to find you!" She admitted. "Ever since we met, I never got to see you again..."

"... Find me?" He was mildly surprised, as he didn't realize he meant that much to her. "But why? Of all people... And besides, what about your kingdom? Do they even know you're here?" Even he was surprised they'd let her out just like that.

"Nope!" Princess Peach admitted. "I came all on my own... Just so I could find you..." Princess Peach soon radiated with a smile on her face. "... And I did!"

"... Why would you go through all this trouble?..." Phantom felt pretty overwhelmed and rather concerned by her visit.

"..." Even Princess Peach herself wasn't exactly sure why as she longingly looked at him.

"... Well... You never really refused your invitation..." She brought up something from the past.

"... O-oh!..." Phantom suddenly remembered. "... I guess I never did..."

"But..." Phantom looked around him, towards all the Boos around him. "I can't just leave them here..." He stressed, feeling like he'd let them down if he did.

"I can't leave you here either!" Princess Peach felt pressured.

"B-but why?" He wasn't sure why she was so intent on taking him away.

"B-because... This isn't you!" She let it slip out of her mouth. "... Y-you're not like this... To just leave you out here, in this cold..."

Phantom wasn't really thrilled about this. He felt like she wanted him to be torn apart from his new family, who he had just met. He thought that maybe he would never see them again if he abided by her rules.

"... What makes you think I'm not fit to be here?..." He felt rather bothered. "... You barely know me..."

"... In fact... you don't even know me!..." Phantom looked perplexed towards Peach.

 _"I-I..."_ Princess Peach was at a loss for words.

"..." Phantom didn't want to delay things further. "... Princess Peach. Is that not your name?"

"... Yes..." She felt nervous, as he stared down at her in a intimidating manner. "... How did you..."

"..." Phantom looked rather distraught by knowing such too. "... Like I've said, I know things even I'm unsure about..." He claimed. "... I don't know why I know these things, I just do..."

"... But one thing I'm sure of..." He made sure to give a impression. "... I'm not leaving from here..." He looked at the Boos confidently.

"... I'm not just going to leave them behind either..."

"But why..." Princess Peach didn't seem like wanting to give up on him.

"Because..." He tried to prove a point. "... Because of them, I finally got to learn more about me." Phantom gave credit to them. "... If it weren't for them, I'd still be wandering on my own..." He thanked them properly. "... I don't think I'd ever learn anything had it not been for them..."

"The Boos?..." Princess Peach wasn't sure whether to trust them. "How do you know? How do you know they're not just taking advantage of you, just so they could have their king?!"

"Master?..." One of the Boos felt distressed, as it tried to reach for Phantom, hoping they could help.

Phantom merely told them to stay off, with but a motion of his hand.

"... I see how it is..." He felt obligated to ask. "... You don't trust them, do you?..." He didn't seem too thrilled about her doubts over the Boos.

"... How can I trust them?!" She pointed out. "King Boo's out of the picture and apparently, now you're the king!..." She doubted them more and more. "How am I supposed to know what their intents are?"

"You weren't here when it happened! You know nothing about them!" Phantom wasn't taking this well. He was getting enraged.

"... How am I supposed to trust someone when they aren't even capable of trusting those I care about?..." Phantom felt divided, as he realized how hard it must have been for them all this time. "I'm all they have... And to just betray that..."

"..." Princess Peach didn't know what to say.

"Master..." The Boos tried to reach to him again. He looked towards them once more.

"It's okay..." He didn't really want them to be scared or frightened.

 _"Just... stay back..."_

"M-Master!..." The Boos felt safe by his side as they received his polite order.

"... W-we will!..." They tried to remain their distance.

Sure enough, they drifted away, allowing Phantom to do his will. He looked at them with concern, yearning for their safety.

 _"... You..."_ Phantom looked towards Peach once more.

".. You really made a grave mistake coming all the way here..." He tried to instill fear on her heart. "Coming all the way here... Just to dare and take me away... From those who took me into their house... Just because this isn't who I am?" Phantom had a glare in his eyes never seen before as he floats menacingly towards her.

"A-ah..." Princess Peach tried to recoil, as she trembled. For some reason, Phantom felt more frightening to her than King Boo could ever be.

"Just because..." He continued to pressure her. "... You wanted to keep me safe? From my own family?" He glared straight into her eyes.

"... Did you really come all this way... Towards the darkness of the night... Despite not knowing what was ahead of you... Knowing fully well your life would be in danger..."

"A-a-ahh..." Princess Peach tried to recoil back even further, but she suddenly slips on her back, making herself completely vulnerable towards him. She was practically shivering in fear, as she was hit by the moonlight coming from the only window in this room, as he came from the darkness.

 _"... Just because of me?"_ Phantom was about to make a move as his face grew more and more intimidating.

"M-Master!..." The Boos felt overwhelmed by his haunting demeanor.

Phantom suddenly makes a dash towards Princess Peach, pinning her down towards the room's floor with his whole body, in hopes of her not getting away, all while holding both of her hands down.

 _"A-ahh!"_ Princess Peach struggled, as she tried to get away in vain.

"... You really are quite something..."

Phantom's expression suddenly changed.

 _"... It's such a shame that you're probably going to regret this for the rest of your life..."_

His face turned somber, as he struck his tongue out and had his mouth wide open.

"A-a-ahhh..." Princess Peach could do nothing, but stare in vain as he coldly stared down at her, teasing her with his tongue. Her heart was racing due to pure fright. Her voice trembled with fear.

She closed her eyes, as she turned away her face, not knowing what was to come, trying her best to fight back, as he slowly approached her, as her eyes start to brim with tears.

As she hopelessly struggled, Phantom stared straight towards her, with his tongue all out, breathing heavily through his buck teeth, as she finally gives up and realizes her mistake.

She realized her end was near.

Phantom took a long look towards her face, who seemed too tired to continue.

Towards someone who tried to take him somewhere unbeknownst to him.

Towards someone who doubted of those he cared about to save him.

Towards someone who had now lost all hope and is now merely lying there, about to be betrayed by someone who she had just met.

There was a brief moment of silence.

His expression changed again.

Phantom slowly pulled his tongue back into his mouth. His expression became serious and his eyes seemed vacant, as he looks down on her with a serene look on his face.

He could feel her breathing through his body, as the bulk of his body weighted down on her.

He approaches her slowly, all while holding her hands down.

He slowly wrapped his lips along with hers to lock a kiss in her mouth, catching her completely off guard.

 _"...!"_ Princess Peach was caught by surprise, as she gets lovingly embraced by his kiss. She slightly struggled, but felt taken aback by his behavior, as he played with her gently.

 _"... M-Master?!"_ The Boos were surprised by his sudden behavior as well, as they witnessed their king venturing with her, not knowing what was going on.

"W-wait!" Another Boo stopped them from interrupting.

As they stared in awe, Phantom continued to kiss Princess Peach in her mouth, all while softly embracing her and caressing her with his lips. This seemed to last for a while.

"..." Princess Peach was still trying to process what was going on, but at the same time, she was being smothered by his sudden affection. For a second, she felt close to losing herself.

 _"... He's giving her his appreciation?..."_ The Boos were surprised by their king's decision.

Phantom continued to wrap his lips around her mouth, as he tries to slowly embrace her with his arms, softly trying to hold her tight, which made Princess Peach lose a bit of sense.

 _"...!"_ Princess Peach felt overwhelmed by this kind of response, but at the same time, her heart raced as he kept going, feeling unusually comfortable by his embrace.

He eventually pulled back from his kiss, taking her breath with him, as he looked upon her once more.

"..." Princess Peach was at a loss for words, as she stared straight into his eyes, all while witnessing a heavily breathing Phantom, holding her down with his weight.

"... Mr. Tom?..." She said in disbelief, as she tried to make sense of things.

His eyes seemed empty, almost hollow. She wasn't sure what's gotten into him.

"..." The Boos were unsure of what to do, as they gazed upon their king affectionately staring at her.

"... Should we leave them be?..." The Boos were clueless at what to do.

"..." They tried to think whether it'd benefit their king.

"... Maybe it's for the best..." They tried not to think about it much.

As they remained on the floor, the Boos slowly drifted away, almost as if to give them some privacy.

"... Let him figure it out for himself..." They watched off from the distance.

The Boos were no longer near them, as they provided them a chance to be alone.

"..." Princess Peach felt the Boos keeping their distance, as she looked towards their king once more.

"... Mr. Tom..."

His eyes still looking down upon her, he felt unreasonably peaceful with himself. He stared straight into her eyes, almost as if he had something in mind.

She could feel his breathing, along with the beat of his heart.

From the corner of her eye, something caught her sight.

There was something about to slide off from his white scarf, but she wasn't quite sure what it was.

Surely enough, it fell from behind his scarf towards the floor, all while he paid no attention.

It didn't take long for Peach to take a look at what it was.

Her expression was that of shock.

Right by her side, there was a brooch. A brooch containing a red jewel. But this wasn't what caught Princess Peach's attention.

It was the fact that this so called brooch looked identical to hers, which adorned a blue jewel instead.

Her eyes widened in shock, as she simply stares at it.

As he notices this, Phantom slowly picks it up. He looked hazily at it from the palm of his mitten shaped hand, all while she stared.

"..." Phantom stared intently at it.

"... This thing's always falling off..."

He proceeded to tuck the brooch safely behind his scarf, all while she watched.

She looked at him once more, as she began to see him in a whole new light.

"..." Phantom remained in silence as he kept watching over her, unaware of it all.

 _"... Why are you staring at me like that..."_ Phantom spoke, with disturbingly emotionless eyes.

Phantom began to caress Princess Peach's cheek slowly with his hand, his hazy sight set on her.

Phantom soon tried to gently lift her face up for another kiss, trying to reach for her warmth. All without saying a word. Only this time, she wasn't struggling as much.

Silence could only be heard, as he wrapped his lips along with hers and steals yet another long kiss. From the distance, you could only see their silhouettes from the window's moonlight, as the rest was cast in shadow, all while he approached more and more.

Phantom, guided by something even he wasn't sure about, simply acted by his own accord, almost instinctively. Unsure whether it was love or lust, pleasure ran through his body.

Princess Peach was merely being enveloped by his own dedication. Whether it was well-intended or not, remained to be seen. The only thing she knew was, it didn't seem like he was harming her in any way.

She wasn't sure what it was, but something about the way he was treating her felt right, even though it shouldn't.

Phantom soon started to sigh, as he pulled himself from this kiss. Princess Peach could do nothing but stare, as he tried to catch his breath. Still, he insisted. He went back at it again, this time more determined than ever, eyes still looking hazy, almost as if controlled by a unknown ambition.

He tries to gently hold her left hand with his right, holding it securely tight. What was about to unfold was something even Princess Peach would have never predicted.

Slowly pushing himself upon her, Princess Peach was shocked to find someone she looked up to pressing their own body with hers as they kissed. At the same time, it wasn't hurting her either, even though he was quite large in size.

She wasn't sure whether this was giving him pleasure, but at the same time, wondered if this was his way to show his affection. She could feel his belly rubbing through her body, making her face flush slightly because of the warmth that came from it. She could do nothing but accept as she closed her eyes.

As he rhythmically kept pressing himself upon her, Princess Peach was caught in surprise by something that overwhelmed her sight.

As he bounced and pressed her lovingly, Princess Peach soon felt embraced by a supernatural light that shimmered and came from within him. He didn't seem to realize what was going on as he embraced her even more with his kiss with eyes close shut, but as he trusted himself upon Princess Peach, this light grew stronger from within the darkness of the mansion, as it enveloped Peach more and more.

Princess Peach was left speechless as this light came from him, not knowing what was about to happen. Soon, some sort of natural mystical force began to embrace both of them, as small amounts of energy swirled all around them. She wasn't sure whether this was because of him being part Boo, due to the paranormal behavior. She had never seen anything like it.

Eventually, he pulled from their kiss to look upon her once more.

Suddenly, orchestra music started to play from the gramophone that beats as his heart.

Phantom tried to softly caress her, as he looked at her straight in the eyes, while his started to gain a little bit more of life.

He began to sing, as he stared upon her, while the light still held strong.

 _"In the middle of nowhere_

 _Surrounded by darkness_

 _I wandered until I could_

 _Until I found a place to be"_

He tried to embrace her with his arms, reaching for her warmth once more.

 _"I stayed for a while,_

 _Refused by the king of his throne_

 _While his subordinates simply stared"_

Little by little, Princess Peach learned more about what happened, as he tried to cherish her more and more.

 _"Ridden and bleak by strange emotions_

 _I decided to leave them be._

 _After I hurt one of them_

 _To be surprised by the very same"_

She starts to understand how it all came to be, as he leaned his forehead next to hers.

 _"They accepted me as their king_

 _Even if I don't act like such_

 _And they loved me_

 _Accepted me and my worst behaviors"_

She also learned more about the Boos and their true intents, as she looked upon them in the distance.

 _"Finally, I had found it_

 _A family I never would have thought_

 _Would accept me_

 _And I tried_

 _Oh I tried_

 _To accept their affection"_

Princess Peach soon realizes why Phantom changed so much in such little time as they embraced.

 _"Amidst everything_

 _I changed myself_

 _My soul and my heart_

 _They were at peace."_

She finally starts to understand his reasoning as well as she puts her hand on top of his chest.

 _"And yet_

 _I felt_

 _There was still something missing_

 _Until you came along"_

She learned that he still felt like there was a void in his heart up until the moment she came to this house.

 _"You broke into our lives_

 _Determined for some reason_

 _You've tried_

 _To defend me_

 _From my own family_

 _All while I stared"_

She was overwhelmed by him starting to sing about her, just before he sings the next verse. Suddenly, a urge of feelings ran through her, as he still pressed himself upon her. She starts to sigh, caressed by the motions of his body.

 _"You stole my heart~_

 _Give it to me_

 _Or accept it as it is_

 _No matter the scars it may have_

 _Since you've decided to take me..."_

Her eyes widened in shock, as she looked at him straight into his eyes. She began to lose control over herself, as her face flushes red and she tries to tug into his arm.

From this point, the song grew more and more intense.

 _"You dare say that this is not who I am._

 _You dare say you do not trust them._

 _You dare say they're not my family._

 _Who do I should even trust?"_

Her eyes started to brim with tears, as she realizes the consequences of her acts.

The song grew more powerful, as his voice resonated inside the throne room.

 _"You stole my heart!_

 _Give it to me_

 _Or accept it as it is!_

 _No matter the scars it may have!_

 _Since you've decided to take me!"_

Princess Peach was soon caught by surprise by his powerful voice, as he tries to send the message across, unknowing of what was to come. At the same time, the light became brighter and her feelings stronger, as she sighed helplessly.

 _"Love me!_

 _For whom I am_

 _And maybe, just maybe_

 _I will love you, embrace you for all life!_

 _As long as I live"_

She suddenly was struck with implications of affection, as she feels overwhelmed by his compassion, the light practically surrounding them, almost as if there was no darkness at all.

 _"Love me_

 _For whom I am..."_

He begged only but to be loved as the person he is now.

Darkness seized to exist for a moment.

 _"And maybe, just maybe..."_

The gramophone was overflowing with music as its pounding grew faster, the instruments sounding a symphony of grand proportions.

 _"I will love you..."_

And maybe.

"A-ah..."

He closed his eyes as he held her tight, focusing in not anything else but her.

 _"I will worship you..."_

Just maybe.

"... A-ah!..."

Phantom then gently held her hand, clasping her hand with his, squeezing it lightly.

 _"... For the rest of my life!"_

He'd be able to learn to love that person for the rest of his life.

 _"Always!"_

As he reaches the climax of his song, the gramophone dwelling deep inside him triumphantly plays a unimaginable orchestra, as Princess Peach couldn't help but yelp in pleasure.

 _"... A-ah!"_ She herself wasn't sure of what she was going through as the melody ran through her body, almost as if each note of the song had its own energy running through her.

The music that came from deep within him soon burst and filled the entire throne room, as he no longer had control over his actions and merely acted out of love.

His emotions were in disarray, unsure of what to do or what to feel.

He didn't want to be apart from the Boos, but he didn't want to be apart from her as well.

He felt like he was betraying them by what he had just done.

The orchestra slowly reached its end and with it, Phantom followed suit.

 _"... Hah..."_ Princess Peach slowly felt more at ease as well, as she sighs in relief.

It didn't take long for the melody to end in a grand finale, leaving him short of breath.

A short moment of silence occurred before he tried to catch his breath, overwhelmed even by his own actions, as he looked towards the woman that laid just before him.

 _"... Haah... Haah..."_ He didn't know the reason as to why, but he felt exhausted as he tried to make of his breathing, short of energy and feeling close of fainting, almost wheezing.

Princess Peach wasn't sure of what to say.

"... Mr. Tom..."

She could tell.

He wasn't just exhausted. He had worn out his voice, barely capable of now uttering words.

All she could do was gaze upon him in such a state, as he tried to recompose himself.

The corner of her eyes brimmed with tears.

She finally understood it all.

"... Thank you..."

"... For such a wonderful evening..."

She looked up towards him with a warm smile on her face.

"... The thing is..."

"... I still want to take you with me..."

"... I want to show you the world out there..."

Princess Peach tried to gently caress a side of his face with her hand.

"... But most of all..."

"... I want to show everyone..."

"... How wonderful of a person you are..."

His eyes slowly widened.

"... It's such a shame though..."

"... But I understand..."

"... You want to be here... With your new family, with the ones you cherish..."

"... But most importantly, you just want to protect the ones you care about..."

Phantom's eyes soon started to brim as well.

"... I was so foolish to think that, for one second, I'd be able to take you with me..."

Phantom felt his bottom lip quiver for some reason, almost as if he was struggling.

"... And besides..."

She suddenly remembered.

"... I have someone..."

"... Waiting for me back home as well..."

She remembered Mario. Not only Mario, but Toadsworth, the Toads and all of Mushroom Kingdom as well.

"... So then..."

"... Why..."

 _"... Why am I struggling with this so much?..."_

Her eyes soon flowed tears down her face as she tried to hold on to the brooch in her chest tightly.

 _"... I'm sorry..."_

Phantom couldn't bear the weight in his chest any longer.

 _"... Haah..."_

 _"... Haha..."_

 _"... Hahahahah..."_

He suddenly just started to laugh.

 _"... Hahahahahah!"_

 _"... It's okay..."_

 _"... I'm fine..."_

 _"... I'm fine!..."_

He really was not. He was a sobbing mess, as he tried to hide his tears behind his forced laughter. Tears were streaming down his face as well.

His voice was cracking too.

 _"..."_

 _"... As long as you're happy..."_

 _"... I'm happy!"_

 _"... Besides..."_

He began thinking to himself.

 _"... They're waiting for me as well..."_

He remembered the Boos as well.

He tried to muster the courage to let her go, despite the tears in his eyes.

Phantom slowly tried to lift himself off from her so she could soon be let go.

"..."

She tried to lift herself off from the floor. He tried to help, by gently pulling her by her hand.

"..."

Silence could only be heard as they faced each other while standing.

"..."

"... Then..." Princess Peach looked at Phantom straight in the eyes.

 _"... Is this good-bye?"_ She still hadn't recomposed herself, although she was trying her best not to fall into the ground once more to cry.

"..."

"... D-don't be so brash!..." Phantom tried to keep a smile on his face, even though his lips still quivered.

"... We'll still see each other..."

 _"... Right?..."_

Another moment of silence occurred before Princess Peach dared to break it

"... Then..."

 _"... I-If you'll excuse me..."_

"..."

Princess Peach soon turned her back against him, as she was no longer capable of looking back into his face without breaking out in tears. She tried to walk her way towards the throne room's chamber door, as you could hear her shoes tip tapping in the wooded floor of the mansion amidst the silence of the night.

"M-Master!" It seems everyone had forgotten about the Boos for a brief moment there. They tried to come to Phantom's aid. Apparently, they were awestruck by the surge of energy that came from that particular moment, as they didn't even dare to interrupt it.

 _"M-Master, w-what was that all about?! Are you okay-"_

The Boos suddenly stopped once they realized what was really going on.

His face was a mess. He could barely speak.

"... Master..." The Boo noticed.

 _"...A-Are you crying?..."_

Phantom merely stood there, as he watched her slowly getting away.

 _"... H-Hah... Hah..."_

He was merely stuttering at this point, his face drenched in tears. His voice was continuously cracking and trembling.

The Boos quickly gazed towards Princess Peach as well, who was about to leave the room and break out in tears as well.

"... H-Hah... Hah..."

" _WAIT!_ "

Princess Peach stopped to a halt.

The Boos had called out to her. For a moment, she completely forgot about them.

She turned around towards them, only to reveal a face drenched in tears as well.

 _"... Huu... H-huuu"_

She could barely get a hold of herself, as she whimpered by the door, all while helplessly trying to clean her tears.

"... We don't know what you did to him..." The Boos tried to get her attention.

 _"... But we can't just let you leave him like this!"_ They showed their master's pitiful state towards Princess Peach.

"... It's clear he has feelings for you!" They tried to stand up to him. "And you can't just deny him that!"

 _"... So what is it that's got you this troubled?!"_ The Boos tried to bring Peach back to him as she tried to dry her tears.

 _"I-It's just that..."_ Princess Peach tried to explain herself. _"M-Mario's waiting for me... I can't just!..."_

"... Mario?... This is about..." The Boos soon understood it all.

"... You're afraid of Mario finding this out, aren't you?..."

 _"... He... He already goes through so much for me!... B-but!..."_

 _"L-Leave her alone!"_ Phantom tried to intrude. _"I-It's not l-like I can just leave this place as well!"_ He sobbed, his voice still cracking.

"And you!..." The Boos tried to come back to their king. "... You're just afraid of betraying us, aren't you!..."

"Ugh, who knew we'd be acting like love counselors!..." One of the Boos groaned.

"Look, it's okay!" One of the Boos tried to speak towards Peach. "Mario's a terrific guy, he would never get mad over the princess liking someone else!" They tried to explain. "We should know, we've faced him several times!"

 _"R-Really?..."_ She still felt disturbed. _"B-but I'm afraid of breaking his heart! And he's supposed to be my savior!"_

"So what?! Just because he happened to save you several times, you feel obligated to love him back? What about your feelings?!"

"And you! - Just because you're our king, doesn't mean you have to restraint yourself to just being with us!" Another Boo stood up to his king.

Deep down, Phantom knew this, but he still felt like he was doing them wrong, as he stood in silence, ashamed of himself.

A moment of silence occurred, as they both tried to get their acts together.

"... Look, we know it's hard, but only you know how you really feel." The Boos did their best as to not influence their choice.

"So..."

A moment of pause slipped by.

"... Take a deep breath and let's try that again." The Boos wanted to give them both a chance to talk with each other.

"Haa..." Princess Peach took their advice as to stop being anxious.

"Haa..." Likewise, Phantom did the same.

"... And this time, no fancy opera singing!" One of them glanced at Phantom. "Even if your voice is pretty!"

 _"... Heh heh heh!"_ Phantom nervously laughed as even he didn't know what had gotten into him.

They both stared at each other for quite a while.

"... I'm sorry." Phantom spoke. "I'm the one at fault in this - For some reason, something just came over me." He mused. "As soon I heard you'd probably leave, I just felt a whole lot of pressure as well."

"... I just wanted to protect them and in the end, couldn't even do that..."

"... I let my feelings get in my way..."

"No, it's okay." Princess Peach tried to ease his mind. "If anything, it's my fault... I wasn't thinking at all... I wasn't being truthful to myself... Nor to others..."

"Mario..." She tried to put her feelings into words.

"Mario is a great friend, a beloved friend to me..." She remembered all the times Mario had saved her from Bowser's clutches.

"But..." Peach grew sad.

"Something didn't feel right..." Princess Peach put her hands against her chest. "I didn't think of him as more than that..."

"..."

"I still care for him..." She said with tremendous guilt.

"..."

"... Is it wrong?"

"... Is it wrong to not love back the one who saved you so many times?" Her heart felt heavy.

Phantom didn't know what to say.

"... You still care about him, don't you?" He questioned her feelings, searching into her heart.

"..."

"... I do." Princess Peach remembers all those times she shared with him.

"... As a friend..."

"..."

"... Mario..." Princess Peach spoke his name once more.

"... Mario's an amazing friend. I wouldn't give him away for anything in this world." She humbly stated.

"... He's kind and really headstrong... And if it weren't for him, who knows what could have happened to Mushroom Kingdom... Or me, for that matter..."

"... He doesn't hate anyone either, not even Bowser."

Phantom realized just how much respect she had for Mario.

 _"... Heh, you really like this guy, don't you?..."_ He chuckled. "... I guess I could learn a thing or two from him..."

"Tee hee!" She giggled at the thought of Phantom trying to follow Mario's footsteps.

"..."

"... Do you believe in fate, Mr. Tom?" Princess Peach tried to get Phantom's attention once more with a rather surprising question.

"Hm?" He looked at her curious. "Maybe. Although I'm not sure where to go from here... Or where my fate lies even..."

"... I admit." Princess Peach spoke. "I was terribly afraid of coming in here - But only because I was worried about you. About what could have possibly happened to you." She let it all out.

"And to see you here, with all these Boos, it made me realize..." Princess Peach soon explained. "... How happy you really were with them. It was wrong of me to judge them so harshly as well. I also hadn't heard of King Boo no longer being king, which was why I grew worried he had done something to you instead." She said sorry to all the Boos.

"My heart pounded so hard as I made my way into here, all by myself..." Princess Peach remarked the thrill of going through Spooky Trails. "All the things I had done just so I'd be able to find you..."

"It made me realize... of how much I may have grown fond of you, Mr. Tom."

 _"...!"_ His gramophone pounded a little over what she just said.

"It's true, I barely know you." She brought something he said previously. "But all it takes is a bit of getting to know each other..."

"And maybe... just maybe..." She looked into his eyes.

 _"A-Ah..."_ Phantom was taken aback.

"... Your brooch..." Princess Peach remarked it.

 _"...?"_ Phantom suddenly remembered. He brought it out from behind his scarf.

"This thing?" He showcased it to Princess Peach. It had a lovely red shimmer to it. "The Boos brought it from a junkyard - What about it?"

"O-oh! So it doesn't..." Princess Peach pointed towards it.

"It's worth nothing!" He quickly pointed it out. "I just thought I'd keep it!" _"It's got a nice scarlet look and it matches my outfit!"_

"... I-I guess I grew fond of it." He politely laughed, looking at it in a endearing way. "I don't really care if it's worthless or not - the Boos found it for me."

"... Tee hee hee!" She giggled once she understood.

 _"... Does it look bad? I can get rid of it-"_ Phantom tried to follow her train of thought.

"No no, keep it!" Princess Peach tried to stop him. "It looks good on you!"

 _"... O-oh! O-okay then!..."_ Phantom looked rather distraught. "If you really want to know, this scarf was with me! _It's made out of silk, wanna touch it?"_

"No no, ha ha ha!" Princess Peach was enjoying her time with him. "It looks good on you as well!"

 _"Heheheheh!"_ He fondly laughed. "Just making sure!"

"Tee hee hee!" Princess Peach grew fond of his laugh. "... And your costume?" She pointed out his attire, which looked rather fancy.

"Oh, this old thing!" Phantom complained. _"It looks good on front, but it's completely tattered on the back!"_ He felt embarrassed. _"It's got holes and dents in it!"_

"Hee hee!" She giggled once more. "I don't know, I think it looks good on you!" "But if it bothers you that much, I can mend it for you! I know how to sew!" Princess Peach bragged about her sewing skills.

 _"Oh - Don't bother!"_ Phantom thought he'd be bothering her too much about it. "Besides, I guess it goes well with my haunting demeanor..."

"Hee hee hee!"

"Hah hah hah!"

They both laughed to their heart's content.

The Boos were entertained seeing this exchange. They were just happy to see their master laughing once more.

Princess Peach felt comfortable with them as well. She didn't realize just how kind the Boos were. Just like how they had accepted Phantom as their king, they too had accepted Peach as their friend. All they wanted is for them to be happy together and tried to help as much as they could. Her opinion of them had changed, as she looked upon them on a whole new light.

She then looked out the window, surprised by a sight.

"H-hah..."

"... What's wrong?" Phantom looked concerned towards her.

"... The sun..." Princess Peach's eyes shimmered towards it.

He looked out the window as well, much like she did.

"... The sun is rising..."

They were suddenly taken aback by the sun's radiant glow, as it began to light the mansion inside from out the window.

The throne room was basking in its glow, in all of its glory.

"... Have we really stayed up all night?..." Princess Peach felt rather caught off guard, as she didn't realize how quick the time had gone.

"Ah..." Phantom merely stood quiet, as he appreciated the sunrise. To him, it was the very first time he had ever witnessed one.

It felt like being under a spotlight. He felt like he could get used to it.

"..." Phantom then realized what that meant.

"... They're waiting for you, aren't they?..." He remembered Princess Peach still had to come back home to Mushroom Kingdom.

 _"H-hah..."_ She felt her heart pounding, realizing she had everyone waiting for her.

"..."

"... Let's take things outside then." Phantom took no time to waste.

"... You don't want to keep them waiting, do you?"

Princess Peach looked up to him once more as he looked at her straight in the eyes.

She nodded towards him, hoping to get home.

As they made their way out the mansion, they were suddenly embraced by the sun's warming glow, as it soon shone light on the once dark Spooky Trails.

Everyone was outside, Princess Peach, Phantom and the Boos. Spooky Trails no longer felt as spooky, as the shine ended the mysteries that were once hidden on the darkness.

Everyone was outside just by the mansion's door, ready to say good-bye.

"... I guess this is it then..." Princess Peach felt rather saddened by having to leave.

"... And I was just getting to know you..." She looked upset, her eyes somewhat brimming.

"... Don't look at me like that..." Phantom felt troubled. "It upsets me to see you like this..."

"... Do you really have to leave?" The Boos seemed to have grown fond of her as well. "We even made cookies!"

"Uhh..." One of the Boos had a platter of cookies hidden behind him, trying to hold it with oven mittens. They all had the shape of a Boo, a few even having the shape of Princess Peach and Phantom in the platter. "It was supposed to be a surprise."

"Oh." The other Boo said. "Sorry about that."

 _"Tee hee!..."_ Princess Peach couldn't help but giggle about them.

"..."

Princess Peach soon felt like she had to do one thing.

"..."

"... I lied."

"... Huh?" Phantom wasn't quite sure what she meant by that. "What do you mean?"

"Well..." Princess Peach tried to explain. "When I said this wasn't who you are... I lied..." "Seeing you acting just like a Boo made me realize something."

"It made me realize of how afraid I was of just being me and to just follow my heart..." She profoundly regretted. "And seeing you so happy made me feel jealous." I felt like I couldn't have any of that." "I was deeply afraid of what others might think of me..."

"But more importantly, I was deeply afraid of what Mario might think of me..."

"When in the end, I didn't even realize you had the very same type of restraint I had." Peach admitted.

" _H-hah..._ " Phantom realized she meant his own made up restraint of being binded by the Boos.

"... I guess, deep down, I just wanted you all to myself."

"... The truth is..." Peach tried to muster the right words to say.

"... This couldn't be any more you!..." Princess Peach felt happy for Phantom having found out more about himself.

"... And I want that!" She spoke out. "... I want to have that same kind of freedom you have!"

"Princess Peach!..." Phantom realized what that just meant. "W-what are you saying?!..."

"I guess what I'm trying to say is..."

Princess Peach tried to muster all courage she had in her heart.

The sun shined on them, as she tried to reach for all the bravery she had.

"... Mr. Tom..."

".. Would you be as so kind to accept my invitation for the royal court?"

She still insisted upon it, refusing to let go of him.

When she came to his aid, she had only but one mission.

To bring him back. And to show who he was to everyone she knew.

She reached her hand, trembling for what was to come. At the same time, she couldn't be any more thrilled.

Phantom was still trying to process her plea.

 _"Master?!"_ The Boos felt anxious over what was to come.

But unlike previous times, the answer was not the same.

"..."

"... Princess Peach..."

Phantom said these words.

"I would be more than glad to."

Princess Peach's eyes had a little bit more of life into them, as she gazed towards him, all while he held her hand in reply.

He squeezed her hand lightly with his mitten shaped hand, as to keep her promise.

She sighed in relief, knowing she had his consent. She couldn't help but shed a tear.

The Boos ultimately gasped and cheered for their king. All you could hear was their laughter, as they celebrated.

 _"T-Then... Does that mean..."_ The Boos soon realized what that meant, as their voice trembled with sadness.

Phantom looked upon them as if he trusted them their own house.

 _"It's okay."_ He softly spoke. _"I'll be back soon."_

 _"I-It's going to get awfully lonely in here!..."_ The Boos felt sorrowful, but still understood their king's desires.

 _"... I'm sure you'll take good care of things..."_ He said, while trying to watch over them, with hope in his heart.

As they distanced away from their mansion, they looked at the Boos from afar.

It seemed as if they grew more intimate as they made their way towards Mushroom Kingdom as they held their hands together.

 _"Take care!"_ The Boos screamed. _"Be careful out there!"_

As they stood atop a hill, Phantom couldn't help but still overhear their shouts.

 _"Don't forget to write back!"_

Princess Peach soon noticed something.

 _"Don't forget to wash your teeth and eat your veggies!"_

She noticed Phantom crying.

 _"We'll miss you!"_ They shouted as much as they could.

Tears were streaming down his face as they showed him support.

Princess Peach couldn't help but see him in such a state.

 _"I-It's okay..."_ He tried to calm down. _"T-They're going to be okay..."_

 _"They really mean a lot to you, don't they?..."_ She thought.

 _"Yeah... It's just that..."_ Phantom mused. _"They've been with me on the worst times... It's hard not to get used to them..."_

Phantom remembered all he had been through with them, as he went through his memories, his tears shedding.

Princess Peach knew exactly what that meant.

 _"Then..."_

Princess Peach soon turned around and prepared to shout.

 _"Hey!"_

The Boos turned around, as they were about to get inside the mansion.

 _"Wanna come with us?"_ She waved towards them, as Phantom looked upon her.

They gasped from afar, in a pure state of shock and surprise.

 _"... Really?!"_ They would be more than happy to. _"... Is it really okay for us to come with you?!"_

 _"I'm sure about it!"_ She assuredly said, after having known them well enough.

 _"Yay!"_ Sure enough, the Boos came in hordes, one by one, as they burst from inside the house.

Soon, more and more came, almost as if there was no end to it, there were thousands of them, cheering for their king.

They laughed and snickered, as they made their way towards them. _"I can't believe we're coming with them!..."_

 _"H-Hah!..."_ Phantom was still taken aback by her decision, as he looked towards her.

 _"Hey..."_ Princess Peach then turned towards him.

 _"The more, the merrier, right?"_ She said, with a smile in her face.

 _"Where could she possibly be?!"_ Toadsworth rambled, as he walked back and forth in the halls of her castle, all while Mario and Luigi stared.

 _"If only I had paid more attention!..."_ He squawked, as he nervously tapped his cane on the floor. _"Then maybe!..."_

 _"Sir!"_ One of the knights that were patrolling came towards him. _"I think you might wanna see this!"_

 _"What?!"_ Toadsworth anxiously replied, while Mario and Luigi were strikingly surprised.

They both were called out towards the roof of the castle, where binoculars stood to watch from afar.

 _"Take a look!"_ The knight soon showed him the way and as to look as far as Spooky Trails.

 _"Princess Peach!"_ Toadsworth spotted her from afar. _"She's okay!"_

 _"But wait!... Who's that with her?!"_ He noticed Phantom alongside her as well, all while she waved towards Toadsworth.

 _"Take a better look!"_ The knight pointed towards behind them.

 _"Hold on - hold on!"_ Toadsworth tried to adjust his binoculars better. _"Wait... Is that?!..."_

 _"Gyahh!"_ Luigi soon leaped into the skies of fright as his brother stared.

He soon scurried away out the castle's door.

A troop of a thousand Boos came, possibly more. They were still trying to count them again once more.

They were all following them back home, as they made their way to Mushroom Kingdom.

As Mario stared from the distance, he couldn't help but laugh, as he realized how stubborn Princess Peach was.

Looks like Princess Peach will have a lot of explaining to do once she gets back home.

 _The End ?_

* * *

 _Wow, I can't believe how big this chapter was! But this idea was begging to be let out. If you managed to read this far, I have nothing else to say but; congratulations! You reached the end of this fiction! Again, I realize I may have not written this as well as I could, but at the very least, I hope I have provided you, the reader, a time well spent! I hope you have enjoyed this story and most of all, to just be true to yourself and others! I realize this might have not been the best way to do it, but at the very least, I'm already happy with the fact that I managed to get to the very end of this story!_

 _For the time being, I'm not sure whether a fifth chapter might occur, but I do have ideas for it. As for now, feel free to provide any criticisms you may have for this little (hah) story. I also realize Romance wasn't put in this as a genre, but I guess I wanted to keep some things secret! Would this be considered a Phantom and Princess Peach fiction? That's up for you to decide._

 _In case you're wondering about the inspiration for Phantom's song, I guess I wanted it to be something of its own, but at the same time, I guess I was sort of inspired by the song Time to Say Goodbye by Andrea Bocelli, when he sang it with Sarah Brightman. I was absolutely torn between using either English lyrics, Italian lyrics or even French lyrics. But as I've realized that I don't have that much knowledge of the other two languages, I simply stuck with English lyrics instead, as to keep things simple and easily understandable for anyone to read and to also go with the fact that Phantom sang in English in the actual game. I realize these are not the best of lyrics, for which that I say, that's what criticisms are for!_

 _Anyway, until next time, peace!_


End file.
